Shots fired.

I think sincerity is a nice sentiment, but if I were to be totally sincere with a romantic partner, it would almost inevitably be emotionally damaging and extremely one-sided.

Suppose the expression of love we were talking about was physical intimacy, anywhere from cuddling to sex, and one partner in the relationship was asexual. The asexual partner can choose to not have sex because that's simply who they are, and they can try to express their affection in other ways. But usually this leaves the other partner feeling unloved because physical intimacy is something most people need.

Likewise, most people need a sense of connection and emotional validation, and that's something I can't give sincerely in the same way that an asexual person can't bond over or enjoy sex with their partner sincerely.

Yeah, I think this is a major factor for a lot of people, and sort of what I was getting at when I said people need a certain degree of love and validation to be emotionally healthy. Without it, they get all insecure, clingy, depressed, or anxious.

The most common manipulation tactics are emotional - guilt tripping, negging, flattery, love bombing, threats, outbursts, etc. You can't be guilt tripped if you don't feel guilt, nor can you be love bombed if you don't feel love. Naturally, it's very easy for me to see through these tactics because I'm unaffected by them. I still wonder if people realize they're being guilt tripped, but the guilt is too strong for them to ignore it, or if their guilt prevents them from seeing the other person's intentions.

There are manipulation tactics that have gotten me in the past, but I'm not going to tell you which ones.

I'm taking that as a green light.

I'll agree to that. As soon as I typed, "but it's so obvious!" I realized that I had no idea how to actually explain it. Not to mention that there are a ton of different manipulation tactics, and each needs to be observed and handled differently.

It's kinda like chess, though. When you first start to play the game, your opponent's tactics might seem simple, random or meaningless. But after learning some basic strategy, it's now obvious to you that your opponent's seemingly innocuous movement of a pawn actually served to unblock, and thereby strengthen, his bishop.

Few people go into the relationship thinking about how much support they'll get because it's one of those things that's generally expected without needing to negotiate it. Kinda like air. You don't pay much attention to it until it's gone, and by then you're already suffocating and so desperate for something to fill your lungs that you'll take anything, even if it's toxic.

People who are overly concerned about such things usually have had insecure relationships in the past. They know what it's like to suffocate. Consequently, they're always thinking about whether they'll have enough air to breath.