Shankar Vedantam

So you've mentioned that you are married now, Antonio, but before you met your wife, you were in another romantic relationship that came to an end.

You were able to use that ending as a kind of forge for making yourself into a different and better person.

Tell me the story of what happened and what you did.

There are times when relationships don't just come undone.

They explode.

They blow up.

Couples don't just drift apart.

They betray each other and then disappear from each other's lives.

Parents don't just pass away.

They leave behind complicated histories and long buried secrets.

Their children are left with endless questions.

As we grapple with the end of such relationships, we may feel we cannot get closure until we know the answers to our questions.

But those answers are not forthcoming.

In some cases, the person is no longer alive.

In others, the person has disappeared or is otherwise inaccessible.

When we come back, how can we deal with situations like this, where we feel we have been left in limbo?

You're listening to Hidden Brain.

I'm Shankar Vedantam.

Do you have questions for Antonio Pasquale Leone about breakups that you've experienced in your own life?

Are there losses that have left you feeling stuck?