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Getting Past a "Haunting" Ex Is Key to Dating

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This Halloween season may be a good time to check out your haunts, so to speak, and see whether you have a "haunting" ex. That's the term being used on social media for when a significant other from the past is still playing too big a role in your present. And getting such a haunting ex out of your mind and life can be the key to forming healthy relationships for the future.

In order to tell whether you have a haunting ex, ask yourself how frequently you think or talk about former significant others. Is it only when specifically prompted or relevant? Or do you tend to bring up your ex a lot? If your response to a friend or a date going to the bathroom is like "Oh, you're going to the bathroom, my ex used to go to the bathroom," then maybe, just maybe, you have a haunting ex.

Also, check how you instinctually respond when any of your exes are mentioned in any way. Is it reasonably neutral or do you still have strong feelings, either positive or negative, like love,

© Psychology Today