I was the one who gave up and tried to end it. My partner at the time stuck by me like a champ; it's no stretch to say I owe him my life. We're still close.

My last bf (different guy) proclaimed himself to be the very picture of mental health and stability, despite having had a rough childhood, raised in a thoroughly dysfunctional family by a delusional psychopath and an alcoholic. He's well on his way to alcoholism himself.

Some red flags (that I noted and sailed right past):

• "I'm always happy. I don't get sad."
• "There are some feelings I don't like to feel--and I don't let myself feel them."
• "I don't trust women."
• "When you say 'boundaries', it sounds to me like you're trying to be in control and I can't stand that."
• "[Yelling] is how I learned to communicate. There's nothing wrong with it."

Yeah. You need therapy worse than I do, buddy.

When I was young I was a magnet for psychotic people. I quit being an amateur and went into the mental health profession

I lost my wife after 12 years also. She never really told me why she left, but I'm sure the reason was she finally realized I wasn't bullshitting her about how absurd I thought the idea of god was that we discussed before marriage. If that is the case, I would consider it that she succumbed to the intentional mental health problems caused by accepting lies as truth.

Yes over a 3rd of USA people need treatment but none is allowed for the illness of religion. ...dopers bipolars violent women have darkened my life but I keep turning to healthy people LIKE MY PEERS HERE www.agnostic.com

Tough love can cut both ways. I helped my son battle the alcoholism that kept our home unstable for years, until it became time to show him the door. I still know that it helped someone, not sure who.