Abby Connolly
Although the trauma of her previous relationship doesn’t affect her daily anymore, things still trigger her here and there.
Unfortunately, her boyfriend’s new cologne was a major trigger, as it was the same one her ex used to wear.
“It was my ex’s signature scent,” she explained. “He was the type of guy to constantly wear too much cologne, and he always reeked of it.”
“I know for a fact it is the same exact one. I was so proud of my boyfriend for finally doing something nice for himself that I didn’t say anything and figured I could get used to it.”
She was fine for a few days while her boyfriend wore the cologne, but one night while they were being close, the smell of the cologne was too much for her, and she started being transported back to the horrors her ex put her through.
She began to cry, and her boyfriend started comforting her right away. But when she told him why she broke down, his reaction was disappointing.
She told him all about how his cologne reminded her too much of her dark past, and instead of offering to stop wearing it, he started arguing with her.
Her boyfriend asked how she would feel if he asked her to change something she uses every day because it reminded him of his ex.
She felt that wasn’t a fair comparison, as her ex-boyfriend differed from any other ex. She sees him more as her abuser than her ex-boyfriend and has no emotional attachment to him.
“My boyfriend and I have only been talking very minimally for the past few days, but I did notice he got rid of the cologne,” she added.
“I feel so terrible for making him upset and that things blew up like this.”
