Why does he still keep pictures of his ex?

In the wake of a breakup, we've talked about giving back all the old stuff, and cutting off contact. But traces of your past relationships--and his!--are impossible to get rid of completely. Is this cause for concern?

Stupid Karen.

A new British study shows that a majority of people purposely keep reminders of their exes around. Why do we do it? Well, women tend to do it for more sentimental reasons, with 61% claiming they do so to hold on to memories they don't want to forget, whereas only 56% of men said the same.

However, men's reasons for keeping their exes around may be a little sneakier and therefore more concern-worthy.

The slight scary rationale guys use to not let go of their past:

20% of men who are in relationships say they have hidden photos of their exes from their current partner. 17% said they feel guilty about keeping photos. 12% admit that they still have feelings for their ex, which may explain why they feel so guilty. 9% of guys keep pictures in hidden files on their computer.

Yikes, right? Look, I don't see anything wrong with keeping exes, if it's for the right reasons. (Most Smitten readers admit to keeping a few!) Past relationships are a part of who you were, and once you're over the breakup, you might find you still care for your ex in a platonic sense. As the Daily Mail article says, "emotionally mature partners will be able to accept you have a past love-life." True that. In fact, I think not having a few pictures could be a bad sign itself. I like seeing old photos of my college boyfriend occasionally. They remind me of myself as a 22 year old girl, and besides, he was a nice guy even if he wasn't ultimately for me. It's pleasant nostalgia, not a bitter longing for the past. On the other hand, my most recent ex? I can't look at photos of him without getting upset, so those are all boxed away for now. That's a sign I'm not as over it as I'd like to be. Knowing that, I wouldn't feel so comfortable if a guy I was dating could barely stand to think of his ex-girlfriend.

Of course, even if the best circumstances I wouldn't be thrilled to come across a photo of a boyfriend and his ex (jealousy is an ugly little monster), but I would understand. But if he was keeping it a weird secret? Yeah, I'd be upset. Would you?

Does your boyfriend have any pictures of his ex-girlfriend? Does it bother you or do you think it's OK? Do you keep photos of your ex?

Is he really over her?

10 Signs a Guy Is Not Over His Ex-Girlfriend

Is It Ever OK to Date a Guy Who Isn't Over His Ex?

Reader's Dilemma: His Ex Still Has Pictures of the Two of Them on Facebook!

Photo: Thinkstock

Reading Time: 3 minutes

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I’ve decided to write this article, when a couple of weeks ago a friend of mine came to me to take my advice on, why her boyfriend still keeps her ex-girlfriend photos?

There are two different scenarios as to why your boyfriend still keeps pictures of his ex. Reason number one is that he’s still in love with her, and he hasn’t completely let go of the past. Secondly is because he’s just used to keeping photos, and doesn’t have any feeling for his ex-girlfriend at all.

Many girls are struggling to know the reason for this weird behavior. Continue on reading to understand if he’s still into his Ex or not with the 5 reasons I have mentioned down below

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Listen to Why He Keeps Pictures of His Ex

You might ask yourself, why should he keep pictures of his ex?

It is normal for your boyfriend to keep pictures of his ex. However considering my past relationships and friends, I’d love to say keeping a picture of his ex could turn your love life into a toxic relationship if you don’t know how to tackle this issue.

The photos were part of his life. You can get rid of them ASAP. But you have to remember that you will push him away if you don’t respect his memories.

Some girls keep things to themselves, but that’s not going to help you at all. Ask him straight up why he keeps photos of his ex and listen to his reasons. You don’t want to jump to a conclusion before you find out all the facts.

3 Compelling Reasons You Don’t Want Him To Keep Pictures of His Ex

1. Sense of Belonging

I see too many couples have a strong sense of belonging with each other. Personally speaking, I don’t believe in this and, I’m a firm believer in freedom within a relationship. You expect him to be your everything in a relationship. You count him as one of your assets.

This is what I can not accept at all. Couples have to stand with each other to grow and develop. But they should not imprison and act like they own the other person.

If you tweak your perspective toward more significant things in a relationship, you will notice soon that there is no place for tiny issues. Does it really matter if he still keeps his ex-girlfriend’s photos on his hard drive or phone while you two are truly loved by each other?

Keep that in mind that you’ll push him away if you take his freedom in a relationship.

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2. Jealousy

Jealousy comes from those moments where you feel inferior. You start having self-doubt and comparing yourself with his ex.

Jealousy can be helpful at times because it can make you realize that something is off and unnormal in the relationship.

When that gut feeling kicks in, specially when your man is keeping pictures of his Ex, then it is better to take a deeper look into it, and ask him Why he keeps pictures of his Ex?

Check out this video Below on How to Deal with Jealousy

Don’t!Although a little jealousy is good, having too much jealousy can lead to abusive behavior and feelings of depression. So act on your jealousy as soon as possible before it turns abusive and harmful for your self

3. FOMO

It stands for “fear of missing out”. You are getting paranoid if your boyfriend takes a look at his ex-girlfriend’s photos and loses interest in you. In most cases, girls overthink.

As mentioned earlier, listen to his reasons. Some guys capture pictures of their ex on social media as a memory, so after a couple of years, they can go through all past experiences, and they feel good by doing this.

It doesn’t specifically mean he doesn’t like you anymore, or he thinks about his ex every day. It’s just a part of his memory and it’s as simple as that.

If it is annoying you emotionally and you can’t help thinking about his ex-girlfriend’s pictures, you need to ask him to delete photos.

But it’s notable how you request him to do it. Honestly, bring it up and let him know how you are feeling about that. Ask him if he’s ok to remove pictures of his ex. Wait for the answer, and don’t be pushy. 

If he says, yes then the topic will be closed. But if he says No,then you have to respect and stop forcing him. You might win the battle and overwhelm him to delete his ex-photos, but at what price?

Showing too much sensitivity about his ex-girlfriend’s images can be a sign of a lack of trust. You might say you trust him. But obviously, he doesn’t think like that. He will assume you think of him as a cheater and someone who still thinks about his ex.

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Is He Truly Over His Ex?

This is a question that is worth knowing. I already provided you with some reasons that you don’t need to wonder, but at some point, you need to consider if he’s still in love with his ex or not.

Unfortunately, some guys get into a relationship to forget their past and try to take advantage of your emotion to help them get over their ex faster.

Read down below to learn more about the signs that show that he is still thinking about his Ex.

5 signs that show you he’s still thinking about his ex.

If you feel like you are in a toxic relationship, hold up for just a bit. I wrote an article on signs that you are in a toxic relationship, that I encourage you to read

Final Thoughts

I feel how painful it could be to live with your boyfriend’s ex memories. But the good news is that you learned many tips and reasons in this read to know if he keeps his ex photos on an intention or not. This is the problem that could lead to a big hassle in a relationship if you don’t nip it in the bud.

It took you about 11 years to complete the academic school. You invested an awful lot of time to learn many unnecessary topics. But how many of you agree with me that relationship and dating is the skill that is left uncovered and the greatest amount of you didn’t learn it.

This is what caught my attention and motivated me to come up with one of the in-depth dating/relationship websites where you can take your love life to the next level. Make sure you visit my Pinterest account, that I have tons of more tips to share with you.

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