My ex keeps contacting me intermittently after a long time. I'm not sure what the right next step is.
I'm looking for objective advice from people who have dealt with something similar.
I was in a relationship that ended a while ago. Since then, I've repeatedly told my ex that I don't want any contact anymore. I've blocked him everywhere and have made it very clear that I want to move on with my life.
The problem is that he keeps contacting me intermittently. Sometimes there are weeks or even a month of silence, and then suddenly he'll call multiple times. Every time I've tried talking to him to get closure or make him understand my perspective, the conversation always goes in circles. It turns into discussions about who hurt whom, what's "fair," and things that happened years ago. It never actually reaches a resolution.
In the past, he has also shown up where I was and once contacted someone I was dating to ask them to back off so he could "have another chance." That crossed a major boundary for me.
Recently, after another conversation where I again told him not to contact me and that I'd consider formal action if he continued, he said he didn't care what I did. Since then, he went quiet for about a month before making another call.
I'm not afraid that he'll physically harm me, but every time I see his name pop up or notice a blocked call, my anxiety spikes because I keep wondering if this is the start of another cycle.
I'm not looking for revenge or to get back together. I simply want him to stop being part of my life.
For people who've experienced something similar:
Did intermittent contact eventually stop on its own?
At what point did you decide to involve the police or take legal action?
Is continuing to ignore the best approach, or is there something else that actually helped end the contact?
I'd really appreciate practical advice rather than assumptions about either of us. I'm just trying to figure out the healthiest way to move forward.