Breadcrumbing: The Latest Way To Dump Someone

William Shakespeare, one of the greatest writers in human history, said that the wounds you cannot see are the deepest. It is the exact type of wound that emerges a new trend that unfortunately threatens to reach countless heights of popularity. We’re talking about the use of breadcrumbing.

Sometimes, as humans, we create ways of confronting things that are really awful or at least not very well thought out, because it is our nature to have emotions.

Not long ago, a new way of dumping someone became popular. It was called ghosting, where you dump someone after a few dates. The usual process is to give a cold shoulder and disappear completely from their life. Now it seems like it’s being replaced by breadcrumbing. Let’s find out what it is.

What is breadcrumbing?

Especially popular on social media, this term obviously has something to do with giving breadcrumbs. But what does that mean in a relationship? Well, this new trend consists of sending small signals to the person in question just to assure themselves that they are still there. It drags them along.

As we have said, this type of “technique”, if we can call it that, has mostly started and grown on social media. But it seems like it’s moving on now. Now there are relationships where two people go on a physical date and there is kindness… But it never becomes official.

Basically, as the name suggests, they lay out “breadcrumbs” and give the other person hope. But deep down, they know it will not go away because they are in no way ready to give their heart to the other person.

Of course, this will really hurt the recipient. They will end up extremely frustrated after trying everything and still not be able to make the relationship work.

According to experts such as psychologist Encarna Muñoz, breadcrumbing can lead to anxiety and pain in people who are exposed to it. They are sent false messages so that they always have this feeling of they are doing completely wrong without knowing why.

How do you know if you are a victim of breadcrumbing?

The fact is that it is a form of manipulation. Therefore, it is important to know if you are a victim of it, so you can stop it as soon as possible. You need to take care of things like these:

• If your partner is not very clear. Normally, when you suggest doing something, they will give ambiguous answers like “we’ll see” or “maybe”. Then nothing happens.
• They give “signs of life” every now and then. You can go weeks without hearing anything from them. But they always leave the door ajar, even if they never start communicating again.

• They usually like virtual interactions and avoid physical relationships, but this is not always the case. They also create a kind of “high tide and low tide”. There is flirting that helps keep you interested, but they never take it anymore.
• They behave irrationally and inconsistently. They may make you feel great, but if you look closely, there are gaps in their behavior. They are also experts at making you believe that the illogical things are your problem.
• It is never the right time to talk about emotions. They obviously do not like to show their cards. So no matter how much you want to be intimate, it will never be the right time. They will make excuses since they do not want the relationship to go on.

What can you do if you are a victim of breadcrumbing?

It is not always easy to recognize that you have become a victim of this type of thing. But if you notice something is not right, here are some tips.

• Analyze the situation objectively. People who use breadcrumbing try to make the other person feel guilty because they are usually insecure. But you need to analyze the situation as objectively as possible. Does it seem normal to you that you only hear from your boyfriend every few weeks?
• Besides,  do you really want a relationship where you feel guilty every time something is not right? Do you think it is normal that there is little or no intimacy in the relationship even if you have been together for a while?
• Set boundaries. No matter how much they avoid being intimate, being clear and setting boundaries. If they still do nothing, you know you are not having a healthy relationship.

Now you know a little more about this new type of relationship. If something like this happens to you, you may need to put an end to it soon. Or they will do it for you. Try to get out of it as fast as you can, because you are in danger of getting hurt.