Hannah and Alexa discuss ghosting.
Hannah mentions an article from the New York Times this week, "Why People Ghost, and How to Get Over it, Time to Go Ghostbusting."
Hannah and Alexa share personal stories and observations about ghosting. Hannah educates Alexa about countertransference.
Alexa defines ghosting: "the practice of ending a personal relationship with someone by suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication".
Hannah and Alexa discuss various examples of ghosting from their personal lives and professional experiences. They discuss friendships and romantic relationships.
Alexa shares her personal experience with grief after losing her best friend, when she felt like she'd been ghosted.
Hannah explains that ghosting often feels like death because there's no closure.
Both discuss current dating culture and how in our search for "the one", combined with the ease of "swiping" a new date, ghosting is common and even becoming acceptable. They examine why ghosting has become common, and speculate that it's because people don't want to have hard conversations.
They both highlight problems with ghosting and the opportunities missed by both parties when ghosting happens. They discuss the pain that happens with ghosting, the questioning, the unknowns, and the missed opportunity to have cognitive closure for both sides. They also discuss the pain, shame and guilt created in the ghoster.
Hannah shares suggestions for how to cope and what to do after you've been ghosted. Hannah and Alexa discuss how therapy can be helpful. They also talk about the stages of grief.
Hannah also shares some education about what seems to make someone a "bad" person, and the importance of being aware that some people just seem to lack the capacity for empathy or compassion.
Ghosting is explained as trauma. Hannah and Alexa discuss how to heal from ghosting, and the importance to review the relationship to see if any red flags were missed. They also discuss how each break-up in life can be seen as a gift and something that teaches us.
Courage, trust, respect, believing in one another's strength to hear hard things, pain, victimhood, empathy and compassion are discussed.
Resources:
New York Times article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/22/smarter-living/why-people-ghost-and-how-to-get-over-it.html
