Contrary to the popular perception that women dig into ice cream tubs while men hit the bar to flirt with the next woman, a split is actually much tougher on guys.
Hormones:
The hormone Vasopressin plays an important role in social behaviour, sexual motivation and pair bonding.
Often the stress associated with the break-up means that the neuro-chemical makes a man view other men as less accessible.
Ironically it is the same hormone that compels women to reach out to their other gal pals because an increase in Vasopressin increases social behaviour.
With a dip in Vasopressin levels, men tend to not discuss their feelings post the break-up with their guy pals and end up internalising a lot of that stress while they keep to themselves.
Delayed reaction:
Women are more likely to cry soon after the break-up, and they’re also more likely to use straight talk when ending a relationship.
So they face their relationship blues head on and get them out of their systems earlier.
Many men tend to repress their reaction, so it lingers until they can no longer find a way to cope with it.
Men respond with a knee-jerk reaction soon after a breakup.
They either go about painting the town red, or displace their anger over a failed relationship.
Some might hit the bottle and some others might take it upon themselves to exact revenge.
Whatever is their type, their initial response is almost never true to what exactly they feel about it.
Once they’re done with their coping mechanisms, they will finally reach a point of breakdown.
This makes their entire process much longer.
Self-flogging:
Many men painfully ridicule themselves for being inadequate or insufficient when a woman initiates a break-up.
The usual group of standard questions arise when this happens: “Does she find someone else more attractive than me?”, “Does someone else make her feel happier and more safe?”, “Does he make her feel better sexually and emotionally?”, “What could I have done better to make things right?”
Men who put their hearts and souls into building a relationship find it difficult to move on when ties are severed.
The usual issues that hurt women also hurt men.
Thoughts of insecurity, betrayal, trustworthiness and loyalty are common, and will eventually test every fibre of a man’s heart.
As a result of the inherent structure of our egos, men often struggle with other unique relationship heartaches women may not be aware of.
This can lead to an entire trip of self-flagellation that often ends up killing his sex drive.
