Absolutely!

@SukiSue In general, beware of anybody with conversational taboos. That's a red flag for deeper taboos and neuroses.

@mischl I was young...now you tell me!! And you are correct.

@EyesThatSmile You're still young. Just a lot more experienced.

Was he the 'strong, silent' type.To me a relationship without communication is no relationship. My 2nd partner was alcoholic but was sober 5 wonderful years. When she relapsed the communication broke down and she said we needed counseling. We did go and the counselor said even though his job is about communication even he often has glitches with his wife. He called me and said the issue was not communication. My late partner was a master at communication and if something was bothering me she wanted us to talk, "now". It took some getting used to but I did.

@JackPedigo Not the strong silent type. Although we didn’t go to church, he liked to quote the Bible, was sure he was head of the house because god said so and thought sex was a taboo subject. He was manipulative and had anger issues.

@EyesThatSmile Does not seem a good relationship at all, and am sorry people have to go through this. My first marriage also had problems but different than yours. Things improved with each passing relationship. It's called evolution. My last involved 2 months on the phone and then off and on visits over 8 months (long distance). That 'getting to know' one another made all the difference. People need to be compatible and have commonalities. There also has to be a balance of give and take and, above all, communication is paramount. I have experienced a wonderfully happy and loving relationship and it would be hard to settle for anything less!!