I’m a 23-year-old guy, and while my life has been decent overall, lately it’s been really tough. My ex-girlfriend and I went through a lot, especially after she had an abortion. After the abortion, she completely stopped talking to me and ghosted me for three months. During that time, I was left feeling isolated and confused. Eventually, I ended up getting involved with someone else—not because I wanted to cheat, but because I was hurting and didn’t know where I stood with her.

When she finally came back into my life, she found out about it and accused me of cheating. She broke up with me because of that, even though it was more complicated than just cheating. It felt like she had already left me long before I ever did anything with someone else.

To make everything worse, my mother passed away around the same time. She had always struggled with hard drugs, and her death was the result of an overdose. Losing her and my relationship all at once has left me feeling incredibly distant from women. I’ve always had some distance, but now it feels stronger than ever. I’m straight and still want to be with another woman, but I’m struggling with how to trust again and open up to someone new.

Now, I’m also dealing with a bit of a drinking problem. Some of my family members seem more interested in controlling me than actually caring about what I’m going through. It’s like they don’t really understand or care about what I need right now.

Not sure what to do now.