Her heart might be broken or she is still reeling from the explosive fight you just had. Her silence could mean a lot more things.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on August 14, 2019. It has since been updated.
A woman's silence can mean multiple things. After a long argument, if she withdraws suddenly, the man can be forced to wonder she chose to do that. It could be that the couple has reached an impasse and the argument just can't go forward. It is possible that one or both partners will retreat then. When a woman goes silent, it could be a calm before the storm or the calm that is there to stay. It depends on each woman how they want to go forward in this situation.
"From my experience working with couples, the silent treatment is often used as a punishment and therefore I find it to be ineffective the majority of the time," marriage and family therapist, Erika Labuzan-Lopez, tells Bustle.
If you want to figure out what her silence means, you have to consider these possibilities:
She can't go on having the same fight anymore. She just needs to step away from the constant tussle between you two. She's at her wits' end. She was accepting and understanding of you. She forgave your flaws and stuck by you through the worst times and yet you did not even try to understand her. You never acknowledged her value in your life and she just can't take it anymore.
In any relationship, when the fight becomes about proving one is right, that fight is already lost. When resolving conflict, both partners should focus on moving forward. Fighting with someone who has the need to prove themselves right always can be frustrating, according to Reader's Digest. Instead of continuing down the road of assigning blame and proving themselves right, she has decided to take the high road, which is a road to love and understanding, according to Psychology Today.
When a woman gives you the silent treatment, it's because she thinks that you are not treating them fairly. When people are not treated fairly, they can start losing faith in themselves, according to Bustle. She thinks that her opinions and thoughts don't matter to you anymore. So, she went silent because nothing she said was getting through to you. As your partner, she has the right to be heard. You need to give her a fair chance to present her views.
Her heart may have been broken completely and she's trying to hide the hurt. She was probably told that acting like a man and keeping silent go hand-in-hand. So, instead of expressing her hurt she is holding everything inside of her. They are trying to adapt themselves to shield themselves from getting hurt in the future. They don't want you to see them as vulnerable.
You might wonder why she hasn't responded for hours, but it just might be that she's busy. Instead of worrying and overthinking about your relationship, she could be more engaged in her career, friends, and otherwise occupied. If you try to gain her attention over and over, she could probably see it as pestering, says Psychology Today.
The conflict may have been too much for her and she needs time and space to deal with it. If that is the case, give her space, but come back to the discussion later. "I do not recommend letting the issue be dropped completely because then it never gets resolved or understood, and could be reinforcing the silent treatment pattern," Labuzan-Lopez says. Her anger may have led to her withdrawing, but she needs to be told that you are there for her.
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