There are times when you find someone who really gets you and you can be yourself with, without any struggles. Then, for some unknown reason, they lose interest and leave you in silence. So, you’re left wondering: How to respond to someone who ghosted you?
If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, let me explain it to you in a couple of sentences. Basically, ghosting is when the other person suddenly cuts all communication with you and never returns your calls or texts.
A ghoster is often a man who ends things with a woman without saying a word, in the hopes of making himself seem unavailable so that she starts chasing after him.
However, most women who get ghosted fall into depression and completely lose interest in being in a committed relationship.
The thing is, not every girl gives up immediately after people ghost her. Some hold onto the guy and try to get revenge, while others accept the hurt, heal, and then move on.
It’s never easy to get back up on your feet after someone ghosts you. Whether it’s your close friend or a guy you were involved with, it’s never easy to just brush it off.
But if a guy tries to come back, asking for a second chance, you may just be able to sort things out. There are ways you can respond to his text message – it all depends on how you feel at that moment.
How to respond to someone who ghosted you
1. “Hey, nice to hear from you again.”
Did your guy suddenly vanish into thin air and not even explain why? And now that he’s back, you’re wondering how you’re supposed to respond to someone who ghosted you.
Well, you can definitely use this sentence if you have no regrets for dating him back then and you’re genuinely glad to hear from him again.
You’ll have two options – you can continue where you two stopped, or you could go your separate ways and let it go.
Also, this is another way that you can tell him you’ve found someone new and it’s no big deal that he ghosted you in the first place.
He’ll know that you’re not angry at him anymore and it’s a subtle way to friend-zone a guy without hurting his feelings.
Certainly use it if it suits your situation.
2. “Have you figured things out in your life?”
Is the texter giving you many reasons why he left you, but without any real explanation? If so, you can then respond to his texts by asking him if he’s sorted his life out yet.
Even if it doesn’t sound logical to him, simply ask him if he’s okay and needs your help with something.
I know what you’re thinking: You’ll come across as rude – as if you’re sticking your nose in other people’s business. But remember that he walked away from you – it shouldn’t sound nice.
This sentence will force him to rethink his reasons to see if they make any sense.
And if you’re not as interested in him as you were before, then you should definitely respond this way. You’re giving him the impression that he needs to sort out his life before thinking of coming back to you again.
3. “I didn’t expect you’d ever ghost me.”
It takes a lot of courage and strength to confess to someone that you have feelings for them. Despite your trust issues and having been burnt before, you decided to build your world around him.
Yet he decided to leave you. Of course, people can be unpredictable, but you genuinely believed that this man wouldn’t ever disappoint you.
Perhaps he didn’t get the impression that you were serious or he had a tough time acknowledging his feelings for you. Whatever the reason may be, he decided to ghost you and there’s no turning back.
But, now that he’s returned, you have to tell him what’s bothering you. Make him understand how his actions affected you when he ghosted you.
4. “You disrespected my emotions.”
Want to know how to respond to someone who ghosted you when that someone was in a committed, serious relationship with you? If you’d gone far with him, then you need to let him know how he made you feel when he bailed on you with no warning.
This sentence gives him the impression that you enjoyed spending time with him and that it stung when he left you.
There’s nothing more you should add to this statement – just send it as is. That way he knows you had real feelings for him when you were together.
5. “Do you do this to everyone you meet?”
Perhaps you had bad luck and ended up meeting a player who ghosts people for a living. If he ignored you a couple of times and then tried to come back into your life, ask him if he usually does this to other girls as well.
There are two ways that he can respond to this statement. One is that he realizes what he’s done to you and then apologizes. The other is that it leaves him speechless and you never hear from him again.
Remember, your goal is to be honest at all costs and find out why he left without even having the decency to talk to you about it. He may see you as a bit too emotional, but it’s necessary for him to see this if you want to have your closure.
No matter what kind of answer you get, some puzzles in your head will definitely settle down and you’ll know what your next move is.
6. “I’m with someone else now.”
You don’t have to be a relationship expert to realize this as a possible explanation for him ghosting you. That he saw you were way into him and started suffocating him.
But we both know that’s not true. Most women give themselves enough time to heal and move on to the next person who shows them care and love.
They search for a man who will meet their expectations and help them realize why it didn’t work out with their previous boyfriends.
If you can relate to this, then you can use this statement to let him know he can’t step back into your life that easily. After all, he used no-contact to get you to chase after him, but he forgot one thing:
Strong women don’t chase or beg.
By saying “I’m with someone else now,” you’re basically telling him that you’re no longer interested in pursuing him at all.
Your plan is to move on, or maybe you’ve already dived back into the dating pool. Either way, this is a good response to someone who ghosted you.
7. “You hurt me.”
Sometimes, people don’t realize how much of an impact their actions have on another person. Perhaps he noticed that you developed feelings for him when all he ever wanted is to be a good friend to you.
It could be this, or he may have been afraid to open up to you and see how things turn out.
Whatever the reason may be, one way to respond to him after he ghosted you is to openly express your emotions and tell him that his actions hurt you. If you felt sad and depressed when he left you, then you need to give him a piece of your mind and let everything out.
Don’t hold anything back. And if it’s possible, you can guide him on what to do the next time he finds himself in a similar situation.
8. Reply to him with a single word
If you’re aware of why a man ghosted you, then he doesn’t need to see you all emotional that he’s back. And even if you are, he has to realize that what he did to you wasn’t okay at all.
You can always go for the one-word option and reply to his last message with a curt answer. “Ok,” “No,” and “Yes” are perfectly acceptable replies if you know that he deserves them.
By using a one-word reply, you’ll leave him wondering what you’ve been up to and whether or not it’s time to move on from you. Maybe he’ll feel a bit of how you felt when he decided to ghost you.
Trust me, he’ll see that you’re not interested in hearing his excuses because you already know what happened. Instead, he’ll likely apologize for what he’s done and start chasing after you.
9. “How do you expect me to react?”
Some men will go to extreme lengths to get the girl they like. Perhaps your man saw somewhere that if he ghosts you and then comes back, that you’d jump to accept him.
That’s why he may be a bit aggressive when he doesn’t get the expected reaction from you.
But you’re unhappy and angry at him for not talking to you or handling the situation like a man. So if you see him giving you attitude, then you can use this statement and ask him how he’d react if he was in your shoes.
By sending him this message, he’ll understand how it feels to date someone you love then be ignored without a heads up.
On the other hand, you need to be careful not to overstep his boundaries and let it escalate into a full-blown fight. After all, you’re not looking to push him away, you just want to teach him a lesson.
10. “Focus on your new girl, not me.”
Let’s say that he ghosted you because he was interested in another girl. It seems like a perfectly good excuse to ignore someone, so why should you be angry at him?
Well, if he has the audacity to contact you even though he has a new girl, then you should tell him to concentrate on her and leave you alone.
It’s sad but true that some guys have it in them to speak to multiple girls at once. And when they see that she’s caught feelings for him and is ready for a relationship, he runs for the hills because he’s petrified of commitment.
You’re an amazing woman who deserves so much more than a guy who can’t decide what he wants from his life and he needs to know that. Tell him that you would rather be single than date him.
Don’t be afraid to express yourself. He won’t see you as the jealous type since he knows that you’re speaking the truth.
11. “Do you expect me to help you?”
If you’re sick and tired of men playing mind games with you, then don’t give him the benefit of the doubt by asking him the straightforward question, “Do you need any help?”
It’s completely understandable that you’re confused as to why he put you on hold in the first place. That’s why you can try this statement to make him think a bit about his actions before talking to you.
You’re basically telling him that you don’t need him anymore and that you’re perfectly capable of making your own choices in life. At this point, no matter what he says to you, you already decided to move on without him.
12. “We’re both happy. Let’s leave it that way.”
Now this is a respectable way to respond to someone who ghosted you. You can say that you’re both happy now and that he should leave it at that.
If he’s pretending to know that he hurt you yet isn’t man enough to bear the consequences of his actions, then you should also act like everything is fine.
It would be especially great to say it if he’s found a new girl.
Just let him know you’re happy he’s alive and doing well. Don’t make a big deal that he contacted you and you’ll see how quickly he moves away from you.
13. “It’s time for me to ghost you, too.”
Being ghosted by a man can have a real impact on your self-esteem and mental health. After all, you put all your energy into making it work and the only thing he did was hurt you and leave you to battle your inner demons on your own.
Telling him that you’ve had enough and that you’ll ghost him too is one way to heal your broken heart faster.
Or you could keep talking to him if you’re cool with it. The choice is yours.
But by saying this, you’re giving him a taste of his own medicine. He’ll see that things have changed and you won’t have as much time for him as you used to in the past.
By using this, you’ll also keep your sanity and dignity as a woman, so it’s definitely worth trying.
14. “Why do you bother talking to me again?”
Your relationship ended a long time ago without any heads up, so why should he bother talking to you again? Yes, you appreciate him reaching out, but there’s no point in exchanging messages when you know nothing’s going to happen ever again.
You want to know the reason he messaged you now, so you ask him, “Why are you texting me?” It’s a direct question that will force him to confess everything to you.
It may be awkward for him at first, but if he still has feelings for you, then he’ll say why he ghosted you in the first place.
If he finally starts acting like a real man and spills the truth, then you have many options on how to respond to him, depending on your emotional state.
15. “I need some time to think.”
Suddenly receiving a message from a man who meant the world to you but ghosted you for so long can certainly throw you off.
You don’t want to make any impulsive decision that you’ll regret later on. So, if you can, ask him to give you some space and time to think about having him in your life again.
Tell him that he shouldn’t text you until you contact him first.
It’s up to you to decide whether you want to give him another chance or stay friends with him. Don’t feel guilty for needing time to process certain things and make up your mind on how to handle them.
Just like the rest of us, you have feelings and you care to protect them.
16. “What you did was not okay.”
Looking for yet another way to respond to someone who ghosted you? Well, if you tend to forgive people easily and believe in redemption, then you could say this when he returns.
It doesn’t mean you’ll allow him to use you again, but you’re willing to listen to his reasons. You’ll give him a chance to explain himself, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll believe him.
This is a peaceful way to speak with a guy who left you without a word. And who knows, maybe you two reconcile and reignite the spark you once had.
17. “You should’ve told me you weren’t into me.”
You can’t expect that whenever you meet someone new, they’ll be completely honest with you. Some men like to play games with women’s hearts or aren’t courageous enough to speak the truth.
And if you feel like he hurt you a lot by ghosting you, then you can respond to him like this. Explain that his actions had real consequences on your emotional health and you wish he’d told you he wasn’t ready to commit.
This is a good starting point for you to express yourself however you want. It’s important, though, that you keep your composure and not let your emotions get the best of you.
18. “I’m no toy.”
Don’t forget you’re a woman who has human feelings and doesn’t deserve to be treated like a toy. He should know it’s not okay to manipulate someone into believing in one thing, go radio silent, and then come back whenever it suits him.
This shows that even if you consider giving him another chance, he’s got to put a lot of effort into redeeming himself.
19. “I changed my phone. Who’s this?”
One way to respond to someone who ghosted you is to give him a simultaneously sarcastic yet serious reply. And you’ll achieve that with this statement.
The beauty of it is he can’t check if you really changed your phone and lost his number.
Your goal is to throw him off a bit so he gets nervous and doesn’t know how to react. Eventually, when he reintroduces himself, he’ll have to confess why he ghosted you in the first place.
That way you can decide to either continue talking to him or not.
20. Talk to him as an ordinary person
One way to respond is to speak to him as if he never ghosted you. Prove to him that his words or actions don’t bother you, even if they obviously do.
Ask him common questions about his life and how he’s been doing. You may be tempted to find out why he put you on hold, but your goal is to leave him helpless and baffled.
When you treat him like this for a couple of days, eventually he’ll start explaining things for no reason, especially if he wants another shot with you.
21. Be clear about what you want when he comes back
Be clear about your intentions and confirm your relationship with him (if any) after he tries making a comeback into your life. You don’t want to hope for something that clearly may not work out – yet again.
Suggest to him that you meet up and discuss the way forward. You don’t have to give your love another chance, you could move forward as friends.
So if you’re unsure how to respond when he makes a reappearance after having ghosted you, use these sharp comebacks to put him in his place and realize you’re not to be messed with.
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