Is Getting Back With An Ex A Bad Idea? People Share Wild Experiences

Is getting back with an ex bound to be a disaster?

Relationships can sometimes be difficult to navigate. That’s just the way life is, and I’m certainly no expert when it comes to dealing with the gentler sex.

However, I’ve long been fascinated by different debates and discussions on the topic, and there’s a doozy for today:

Getting back with someone you’ve already split from.

Reddit users share stories about getting back with an ex.

A viral Reddit thread is breaking down different stories of how getting back with an ex went, and the answers are all over the place.

Check out some of the top answers below, and let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com:

• Don’t do it. You’ll think they’ll be better but it will be the same sh*t show as it was. Remember they’re an ex for a reason
• Turns out if you put spoiled milk back in the fridge and check on it later…it’s still spoiled milk
• I’ve done it. Don’t do it. The sequel is always worse than the original.
• It’s like trying to reheat french fries in a mircowave
• Yes, I got back with my ex after a year apart. It started off great, but we quickly fell into old patterns. In the end, we realized we were better off as friends
• I re-dated three different ex girlfriends from high school through post-college. I’ve been married to the HS ex for over 15 years
• Yes, because i wasn’t ready to give up on her, but after 9 more months nothing had changed, and the love i had for her faded. I don’t regret it though, it taught me what I needed to learn.
• Really rare here, our 10 year wedding anniversary is next month.
• It depend why it ended. If you amicably ended it because you were going to study or work to far appart, sure why not. But if you split because one of you was unhappy with the relationship, or you were uncompatible for some reason, unsure how it could go different that time.
• Don’t do it
• yes. i now have a restraining order against him.
• Me and my wife (unmarried at the time) broke up briefly. On Friday, I said we need time apart and come Sunday morning, I made the call for her to move out. We had been together for 4.5 years at that point but sharply declining for a year. We talked on the phone to clarify it was over. When she came to collect her belongings, we spent several hours hashing it out. She didn’t move out. We kind of hit the reset button and now we’ve been married for 7+ years with kids. We are doing better now than pre-kids.
• I dated someone in college I could just never get over. Until then I’d never had that type of chemical or mental connection with anyone. But we didn’t last. Fast forward 10 yrs. I’d been married, I’d had a child… he looks me up, we try to date again. (I’d also gotten a divorce, was single again.) I was so sure it would work THIS time. We were both older and wiser. But no. He was still the same guy with the same problems. It was potentially even worse the 2nd time. The whole situation inspired me to get onto match, where I eventually met my now husband. Who, btw, is leaps and bounds more amazing than old college guy.
• Don’t do it! -signed a person that did it. Let it go, the person ain’t for you
• I dated a girl for a year and a half, I broke up with her because she didn’t put any effort into the relationship and was only there for the sex. I gave it another chance after few months and I broke up with her for the same reason and felt nothing for her at that point of time and thought it won’t be fair to keep her
• Never return to a lit firework.
• It didn’t work the first time, it DEFINITELY did not work the second time.
• I once got back with an ex who cheated on me just to cheat on him and dump him again. Petty? – Very much. Satisfying af? – you bet.
• Don’t ever circle the block

Unfortunately, I’m not sure I have much advice I can share here. I’ve only dipped my toes back into the same relationship once after a very short break, and it was the same hellish nightmare that it was the first time around.

It’s a tiny sample size, but given it’s all I have to go off of, I’m inclined to agree with people who say don’t do it. I’m a bit pessimistic (perhaps, I’m just realistic), but people don’t change after a certain age.

Once you hit your mid-20s, you’re more or less who you are, minus some minor tweaks here and there. If a person was garbage the first time around, it’s hard to believe they’ve changed enough for it to make a difference.

It’s like the scene in “Moneyball” when it’s discussed how to properly cut a player. Once you make the call, you deliver the news straightforwardly and stick with it.

Reddit users share stories about what happened when they got back with an ex. (Credit: Getty Images)

Think I’m wrong? Have a different experience? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.