Well, the simple answer to this issue is…don’t. Unless you’re part of the cast of a long-running sit-com, you shouldn’t have to see your girlfriend’s ex on any kind of a regular basis. Sure, you might run into him once in a while at a bar or the occasional party, and he might throw out that “Yeah, I fucked your girlfriend” kind of vibe when he shakes your hand, but you can handle that. Getting yourself too worked up over that kind of shit really only makes you look insecure. If you want to keep the upper hand in your relationship—and you do—act like it doesn’t bother you at all, even if it does.

But say you’re seeing the guy more than that. Say you’re seeing him a lot, and it’s getting on your nerves. Well, there are a few possible reasons for this, and in my opinion, none of them are good.

The first scenario is that they’re genuinely still friends. Your opinions may vary, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to be friends with your ex. No matter how laid back you are about it, how amicable your split was, or how great you still get along, it’s going to cause some trouble at some point. So personally, I don’t put up with that shit. I don’t make her choose him or me, I just tell her I don’t like it and break up with her. Who am I to tell her who she can and can’t be friends with? You can’t ask things like that from a girl unless you want to give her something to use against you later in the relationship.

The second scenario is that the guy’s not over her and keeps coming around, hoping to win her back. This can be a pain in the balls, but it’s not really fair to hold it against her. You’re going to have to step up for your woman and run the guy off.

The best thing to do is to track him down sometime when the girl’s not around, then sit him down and tell him to back off. Unless he’s a crazy stalker or a complete asshole, this should be all it takes. You know from experience that a woman can make a man a little crazy sometimes, right? C’mon, be honest. So give the guy the benefit of the doubt. Convince him he needs to move on.

If he doesn’t back off, though, or tells you to go fuck yourself, well, you might have to get physical. Good luck with that. Hope he’s not bigger than you.

The third and worst possibility is that the girl’s behind the whole thing. If that’s the case, then you should run away screaming, because that girl is crazy. She’s running a manipulative game, and what’s worse, she might not even be running it on you. She’s either trying to make you or her ex jealous by arranging for the three of you to run into each other. You don’t want any part of that insanity.

So yeah, dealing with an ex-boyfriend is a battle. If you’re going to hang around, make sure she’s worth fighting over.

[Image via Shutterstock]