Did he block me because he cares? 16 reasons why he blocked you on social media

He’s disappeared from your friend or followers list. When you try to search for his account, you can no longer find it.

Yep, he has blocked you.

Maybe you had a fight or you recently split up. If he’s blocked you, it stings. But what you probably want to know is why?

Did he block me because he cares?

The truth is that there are many potential reasons why he blocked you.

This article will help you to figure out whether he blocked you because he cares, or if something else is going on…and what to do next.

Did he block me because he cares?

On the surface, blocking someone because you care can seem very counterintuitive.

But when you decide to block someone, although it seems like you’re cutting them out of your life, you’re actually sending them a strong message.

The reality is that when someone provokes an intense response from us, it’s often because we care.

Even though it might seem like a cruel or aggressive move to block you, in some situations, it can hint at strong feelings.

After all, the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. If he wasn’t bothered at all, he probably wouldn’t react at all.

So yes, sometimes him blocking you can be a sign that he cares. But not always. It’s important not to kid yourself.

To know how to respond, you need to consider all the possible reasons and objectively work out which one best applies to you and your unique situation.

So let’s get started.

16 reasons why he blocked you on social media

1) He’s looking for a reaction

Let’s face it, blocking someone is pretty immature.

It’s not particularly a healthy way of dealing with situations. Neither is it subtle.

The reality is that even if you do want someone out of your life, it’s often way easier to let your connection slowly fade.

Blocking anyone is a drastic and dramatic move.

You cannot sneakily block someone because they will always find out. So, it makes it very obvious that they have taken the decision to remove you.

In this sense, although it is avoidant it’s also kind of confrontational too.

That’s why his motive for blocking you could be to get a reaction out of you.

The very fact that you are scratching your head and wondering what is going on might be exactly what he was hoping for.

If he’s got reason to feel frustrated, it’s a way of saying f**k you.

He might be trying to make you feel guilty about a fight, sorry for something that happened, remorseful for dumping him, etc.

Basically, he is trying to push your buttons.

2) You’ve offended him

Think back to the last conversation you two had. Was it normal or was it a bit strained?

Did he act in a weird way? Could you have said something that he took the wrong way?

Online communication isn’t always the easiest.

Humans rely upon so many non-verbal factors to read situations. We read into not just what is said, but how it is said, the body language of the other person, their facial expressions and their tone of voice, etc.

Messaging over social media can easily be interpreted the wrong way. In fact, research has suggested a whopping 50% of emails and texts are misunderstood.

That was one of the reasons emojis were introduced — to offer more context to what we mean to say.

You could have been joking and he took it the wrong way. Or you may not have meant to offend him, or even realized you had.

3) He’s ghosting you

One of the most frustrating and utterly confusing situations you might experience is when ‘he blocked me without explanation’.

No warning signs, no build-up. Just one day he disappears and you feel like he has blocked you for no reason at all.

But the truth is:

There is always a reason.

You cannot block someone by accident, so even when you can’t think of any logical reason, know that he does have one.

Sometimes in these situations, the reason is that he is taking the cowardly way out.

Ghosting emerged in the digital age because in the online world it feels easier to delete someone from your life.

In real life, you wouldn’t just ignore somebody, as that would be very awkward. But online you can remove and block people, and never have to see them again.

No need for uncomfortable conversations or explanations you don’t want to give.

It sounds very harsh because it is.

But if he has decided that he is no longer interested but doesn’t want to face the discomfort of letting you know, he may just block you instead.

Particularly for guys who have a high turnover of girls in their life, they may decide to block women in an attempt to sidestep any drama or take responsibility for themselves.

4) You’ve freaked him out

Men are usually physically stronger than women, yet plenty of guys get scared by girls in different ways.

It might be that you said or did something that freaked him out, so now he is putting distance between you and him.

Perhaps you reacted badly, lashed out, or said some angry things. Maybe you came on way too strong and scared him off.

If you have intimidated him in some way, you’re likely to know about it.

We’re talking about hounding him, not just sending one too many memes.

I’m not suggesting you are, but maybe he thinks you’re a bit crazy. He feels like you’re too sensitive, or that you’ve been overreacting to his actions.

Blocking you is a sign that he has reached breaking point with your behavior. Perhaps he tried some more subtle moves first, but it didn’t work.

For example, he may have ignored a few messages, but you just intensified them. He may have withdrawn a bit, and you reacted by having a go at him.

If you have done things or said things that he feels were too intense, then blocking you is a way of telling you it’s time you took a step back because he can’t handle you.

If this is someone you have or have had a romantic relationship with, it doesn’t definitely mean he no longer cares. But he feels the need to put some space between you and him right now.

5) He’s mad at you and trying to hurt you

Because blocking feels so brutal, it can be the perfect weapon to try to get back at someone.

If you’re wondering ‘why did he block me after an argument’ this could be your answer:

He’s punishing you.

If you’ve had a falling out, then think of this as the social media version of sulking or giving you the silent treatment.

Particularly when you’re not seeing each other in person, blocking someone on social media can be a way to stonewall them from a distance.

It’s a big flashing sign that lets you know “I’m not speaking to you”. It says to someone, I’m pretty p**sed off with you right now, and here is my way of telling you without telling you.

He is revoking access to his world and leaving you on the outside.

Whether it’s only temporary and just a way of getting his message across or more permanent will depend on your situation.

But if he’s mad at you he is blocking you because he cares, as he is trying to make a statement and create a reaction in you.

6) He feels rejected

If you have no idea why this guy would block you, and you thought you were friends then this could be the reason:

He is feeling rejected.

Perhaps it was more than friendship but you thought things were cool between you two.

There hasn’t been any drama and he was contacting you regularly, or you would chat every now and then.

But if he felt like he wasn’t getting enough of your attention, or his attempts to make a move weren’t working — he might be giving up now.

Blocking you is more symbolic than just stopping reaching out.

It’s a childish way of expressing his anger or disappointment. Or as the expression goes: he is throwing his toys out of the pram — aka having a tantrum.

He cares and so he feels rejected by you. That is why he blocked you.

This is likely to apply to you if it’s someone you have been giving little of your attention to. But he has been far more attentive and keener than you.

7) You called him out

This explanation is another reason a little boy masquerading as a grown man might decide to block you:

You called him out.

Maybe he said or did something out of line, and you let him know. Perhaps his behavior fell below your expectations and so you pointed it out to him.

He may have even been lying to you or feeding you BS, but you’re not having any of it. He cheated on you and you found out, so you confronted his ass.

Sadly, if he can’t handle the confrontation, he might decide instead to sculk off and crawl back into the hole he came from.

A lot of people are afraid of disputes, whether they feel like they deserve it or not.

So if you call him out, he may decide that he can’t be bothered to resolve things, apologize or explain. And so he blocks you.

If he is a player who showed his true colors then this is a very likely reason.

8) He’s trying to get over you

The first thing I do when I split up with someone is remove them from my social media. Ok, I don’t block them but the thought process can be the same.

For a lot of people, it’s too painful to see what your ex is doing without you or have them casually reach out to you.

It slows down the healing process.

Instead, making a clean break can feel like the best thing to do. It’s not that he is looking to hurt your feelings in this case. But he is trying to protect his own feelings.

It’s because he cares that he can’t stand to keep in touch on social media.

It’s not always just exes either that might block you for this reason. I’ve also unfollowed people I have a crush on and who I can’t seem to shake feelings for.

Blocking you is a way of going cold turkey when they are trying to move on.

9) He is covering his tracks

He might block you when he doesn’t want you to see certain things on his social media profile.

That might be incriminating content that could get him into deep water. For example, certain photos or followers that might raise your suspicion.

Maybe it’s comments from other girls on his posts, new followers (aka attractive women who you don’t know), or even juicy goings-on from his boy’s night out.

He doesn’t want you to see who he is following or who is liking his posts.

Ask yourself whether he could have things to hide?

Like a girlfriend or wife for example! Or maybe he is trying to cover his tracks after cheating on you.

If he wants to keep certain things from you, he might decide that blocking you is his best bet — even if it’s only a short-term measure.

10) He is hurting

This one is general, and the reason he could be hurting will depend on your situation. But if he is in pain, then blocking you might be his way of protecting himself.

It’s a defense mechanism to avoid getting hurt any further and to deal with the pain.

This is different to being mad, trying to get back at you or simply trying to get a rise out of you.

He is having a hard time with his feelings for you, so he clearly must care.

If you know you’ve done something that will hurt him, then this is the likely culprit for why you were blocked.

It could have been something cruel you said or something you did.

If the situation is still raw, then he might come around once the dust has settled, and unblock you once he calms down.

11) He’s got what he wanted from you

There are undeniably a lot of great guys out there, but there are also plenty of players too. And sadly, the players tend to not give much of a damn.

If he is pretty far from being Prince Charming and he has already got whatever he was looking for out of you, he may now unceremoniously move on.

He might have just wanted a quick fling, he could have been looking for some attention or something to do when he was bored.

But if he has lost interest, much like the guy who decides to ghost you, him blocking you feels easier.

Rather than blocking you because he cares, in this instance the opposite is true.

Sadly, he isn’t interested enough to keep you in his life. Neither does he feel like he owes you any explanation for why he has chosen to part ways.

12) His girlfriend is jealous

Does the guy in question who has blocked you have a girlfriend?

If he does, then she may not be so happy about you two being connected on social media.

This can be the case if:

• You two are exes
• Something romantic/sexual has happened between you in the past
• You two are just friends, she doesn’t like it.

Jealousy provokes all sorts of illogical reactions in people.

If this guy’s girlfriend isn’t too happy about you two being in touch then she could be putting pressure on him to cut contact.

You know what they say, “happy wife, happy life”.

Blocking you might be the price he is willing to pay to make things sweet at home. Even if it’s unjustified and you’ve done nothing to deserve it.

13) He doesn’t want to be tempted to reach out

Yes, blocking someone is extreme. But perhaps in some situations, that’s the whole point.

Perhaps he wants to take the drastic measure of blocking you so that he isn’t tempted to reach out.

For example, you split up or had a fight and he wants to be sure he isn’t tempted to contact you. Maybe you broke his heart and he still cares, but he wants to stay strong.

It can be harder to backtrack once you’ve blocked someone.

So even though he may want to talk to you, he is doing everything he can to try to make sure he doesn’t.

So by blocking you first, he prevents himself from doing anything he may regret…like sliding into your DM’s at 3am.

14) He is doing damage control

If you’ve gone through a breakup or you have been romantically involved in the past but aren’t now, blocking you can be his way of attempting to shield you.

Admittedly, it’s also a way of shielding him too.

There may be things he doesn’t want you to see, and things that will only hurt you if you do see them.

That’s why, as tempting as it can be to keep stalking our ex’s social media, it’s often better to unfollow.

We read into things and can end up being triggered by finding out things we’d rather not know (even when we think we want to know).

Perhaps he thinks it’s best if he spared you both the unpleasantness of this ex-stalking that is so rife online.

He may also fear he will get an ear-bashing or you will lash out at him if you see things on his social media that you don’t like.

15) He’s game playing

If you’re involved in a bit of a toxic relationship with this guy, then blocking you might be part of his game playing.

If he wants to take control, he might turn to nasty mind games in order to do so.

In other words, he may be trying to manipulate you.

That could be to manipulate you into giving in, manipulate you into saying sorry or manipulate you into doing what he wants.

This is especially likely if he often uses manipulation or gaslighting against you.

For example: maybe you’re upset about something he did. Perhaps he was mean to you or cheated on you. So you tell him how hurt you are.

But instead of begging your forgiveness, he twists it around and tells you that he’ll get out of your life for good if you no longer want him in it.

Essentially he is using blocking you as some kind of threat to take the upper hand.

16) He overreacted in the heat of the moment

Think of the last argument you had with someone.

Did you say things you didn’t really mean? Did you get carried away and let your emotions get the better of you?

Most of us do when we’re in the heat of the moment. The truth is that feelings create powerful reactions. And often, overreactions too.

That’s why blocking someone is often just that, an overreaction. It’s a knee-jerk decision that he made when he wasn’t thinking straight.

He might have been irritated momentarily at something you said or did. Either way, he reacted emotionally and then blocked you.

It may not be much consultation, but it says more about him than it does you.

He obviously cares, otherwise, he wouldn’t be triggered. And if this is a move he made without properly thinking it through, he will probably unblock you later (and hope you never noticed).

How do you react when a guy blocks you?

1) Double check they blocked you

It sounds obvious, but the first thing to do is to make sure you aren’t the one overreacting.

Have they definitely blocked you or are they just taking a break from social media? Could he just be offline and that’s why your message wasn’t delivered?

A good way to check is to look his profile up from a friend’s account. If it appears for them and not you, then he has definitely blocked you.

2) Don’t overreact

Here’s the thing:

I know you might be tempted to get his attention somehow, wondering what you can do to get through to him or let him know what you really think of him.

But you don’t want to do anything rash. Don’t play his games. Sometimes ignoring someone is the best revenge.

That’s especially true when they are trying to get a reaction out of you.

If he is the kind of guy who would move on without saying a word, then as painful as that is, you are better off without him.

You don’t need to do anything right away. In fact, the reality is that if he blocks you, there may be little you can do right now.

3) Get offline

There’s no denying it can feel horrible when someone blocks you. Regardless of their reasons, it feels like a rejection. And none of us like to be rejected.

So the best thing to do is step away from your phone, tablet or computer for a bit.

A digital detox every now and then is good for your mental health anyway. So put down the tech and have some real-life fun to take your mind off things.

Go see friends, read a book, or do one of your hobbies. Basically, look for a pleasant distraction.

Regardless of what you do, take a break from social media. It’s not the best place to be if you’re feeling a bit down.

4) Give it time

You know what they say, time reveals all things.

It’s hard not to be impatient, but often with some time and space things sort themselves out.

Sometimes the situation will actually resolve itself, and once he calms down he will unblock you again. That way you can ask him what’s going on.

But if he is the one who decided to block you then the ball is in his court.

Leave it up to him to come to you. If he cares, then he will.

If he doesn’t care then no matter how upsetting that might feel, know that you have had a lucky escape and good riddance.

5) Get expert advice

While the reasons in this article will help you understand his motivations for blocking you on social media, it can be helpful to speak to a relationship coach about your situation.

We don’t always see things objectively and our judgement can be clouded.

With a professional relationship coach, you can get advice tailored to the specific issues you’re facing in your love life.

Relationship Hero is a site where highly trained relationship coaches help people navigate complex and difficult love situations.

They’re popular because they genuinely help people solve problems.

Why do I recommend them?

Well, after going through difficulties in my own love life, I reached out to them a few months ago.

After feeling helpless for so long, they gave me a unique insight into the dynamics of what was going on, including practical advice on how to overcome the issues I was facing.

I was blown away by how genuine, understanding and professional they were.

In just a few minutes you can connect with a certified relationship coach and get tailor-made advice specific to your situation.

Click here to get started.