Ex partner shut me out after diagnosis

Hello, this is a bit of a long one.

I'm 25 and my 27 year old partner have been together for 6 years. Like many relationships it has been Rocky but we've always found our way back to eachother. Since the start of this year he's been very distant with me not knowing if he wanted the relationship anymore, and I have worked so hard on it to try stay in contact and he still wasn't sure, he was living as though he was single but still contacting me every few days. from the start of the year he had swollen lymph nodes in his neck. Back and forth to doctors and they kept saying not to worry and it was probably glandular fever. He ended up breaking up with me just over a month ago saying the relationship was too stressful, he didn't love me anymore and this has put life into perspective and he realises I'm not making him happy, but the door was very slightly ajar if I wanted to wait. Since then I've been trying to check up on him and he's just been really nasty to me.  I was the only person he told so I was at the other end of the phone for every rant every appointment, everything. He went for a biopsy last week and I offered to go with him but he kind of shut me out and just stopped talking to me, which I thought was strange but knew it was a stressful time. 2 days ago he got the diagnosis he has hodgekins lymphoma. He told his mum 2 days before his results and she went with him. He called me and literally said 'don't freak out, I have hodgekins lymphoma, it's at least stage 2, I have more tests and chemo next week, I never want to hear from you again' he hung up. I lost my dad at 15 to melanoma so instantly went into panic mode and messaged him asking if he could ring me to tell me more information, he wouldn't. I messaged his mum saying I will always be at the end of the phone for her and if she needs help with anything I'm here, she blocked me. She's very controlling and I knew as soon as he told her, things would change. I have tried to check in on him every day but he just won't talk to me, he has spoken to and visited all his family and friends and just thrown me in the bin now everyone else knows and he doesn't need me anymore. It seems im the only person hes shut off and cut out. Even when he's been awful to me this year I have never once caused him any stress or being nasty back, I've always just been there the best I can. I messaged him yesterday asking if he wanted me there for him or not, and he said he will never speak to me again, never wants to speak to me again, he's sick of me, if I don't back off his mum will come round and warn me, and he doesn't want any of his memories to be with me. Obviously this killed me but I responded saying I was so sorry I made him feel like that and I will respect his decision, but I have spent a lot of money on things to help with chemo like heat pads/warm clothes/sweets etc and if he would like me to drop it off or return it. He told me I could drop it off and if I didn't speak to him anymore then he will think about keeping me up to date with things but if I say one more word to him he will cut me off and I'll know nothing. 
my heart is breaking and I just don't know what to do for the best. Is he angry and needs someone to be angry at and will come round? Has he just used me until he doesn't need me anymore? Do I move on or do I wait for him? He is having 12 weeks of chemo. I'm struggling to get through each day, I can't get out of bed my mind is going in overdrive. He knows me being there can't hurt me, he knows I won't get scared and run away because I've been there before. I just don't know what to do. It's killing me not knowing if he's okay or not and it's killing me not being there when I should be and promised him I would be.

  • Hello, I'm so sorry to read what an awful time you're having. This might sound a bit blunt but I think he's made it pretty clear, it's over between you. You must respect his wishes and don't contact him ever again. I'm not sure why he felt it necessary to " dangle the carrot" that if you don't contact him, he may bestow on you some updates! that sounds cruel to me but may be you're not realising that by contacting him every day, it's driving him further away. I have been in a similar situation to you with a man I adored many years ago. My love was unrequited and I mistakenly thought by being kind and giving, he would eventually feel the same. All it did was drain me and it made me quite ill. It wasn't until I moved on from him that I met someone to whom I'm now married. My relationship is now right and we adore each other. You will have that too when you learn to let go of this man. It'll hurt like hell, but you can do it. I now look back at him and feel nothing because the person I am with now is my soulmate. You can do it. 

    Here if you need to chat. 

    Jane xx

  • Hi Jane 

    thanks for your response. It's very awkward because as soon as he said he didn't love me, he took it back and said he did love me he just couldn't be with me, but the door was slightly ajar. I know this year has been unbelievably stressful for him with all these tests I just feel like I'm being made to be the bad guy. I haven't spoken to him since Thursday as that's when he said if I do as he says he will keep me in the loop. I won't lie the relationship has always been quite controlling and narcissistic and he does use talking to me or ignoring me as punishment so a part of me thinks this is another control tactic and him leaving the door slighly ajar means he knows there's no way I will move on, which I don't think I could anyway, he's hes controlling and yes he's manipulative but we have been together a long time and I love him so much and he is my best friend. I'm hoping once he comes to terms with it maybe he will let me in I don't know. I will just have to see if he updates me with anything next week. I can't imagine my life without him as it is never mind imagining him going through cancer without me when I promised I would be there and he said he would let me. I'm just a mess at the minute. I contacted his friend today and he said he's been really positive and taking it all really well and it just makes me think why have you been so emotionally abusive and evil to me when I'm the one person who would stick by him and drop everything to be with him and he's even said if he ever needed anyone he would always call me first. I don't know. I don't want to move on and I don't want to give up on him, but I'm not eating I'm not sleeping I'm not working, this is going to kill me before anything comes close to killing him xxx