He may not say it, but you can tell when a Cancer man is done with you by how he treats you.
No, it’s not your imagination that he’s acting cold and emotionless towards you more and more often.
Cancers have difficulty ending relationships outright.
So they slowly detach over time.
If you’re seeing these behaviors, your Cancer man might be trying to make an exit:
- He lies and keeps secrets from you
- He’s never available to you, even at the times you know he’s off from work and he’s not doing anything
- He’s so easily offended by you, it’s exhausting
- Even if he says he cares, he still doesn’t show up for you
Don’t ignore these signals.
There might not be much you can do, but you need to know what’s going on so that you can stop going crazy.
What about going no contact with the Cancer man?
Is there a chance you can turn this all around?
I’m going to touch on these questions too, so stay tuned.
When a Cancer Man Is Done With You: 14 Signs
He Becomes Emotionally Closed Off
When a Cancer man wants to break up or stop seeing you, he starts by barricading his heart.
That connection you used to feel flowing between you?
He shuts it off like a valve.
Yes, it’ll be sudden like that.
Almost overnight, you’ll become aware of a massive, chilling distance between you and the Cancer man.
He won’t be sharing his deepest thoughts and feelings with you anymore.
And he’s definitely not asking you how you’re doing, checking in on you like he used to and offering his support.
It becomes so awkward trying to reach through the barrier, you stop wanting to.
He’s just so closed off to you now, he makes it impossible.
Read Next: 20 Cancer Man Turn-Offs to Avoid
He Removes Himself from Your Proximity
As a Cancer man becomes less and less interested in a relationship, he slowly starts to fade out.
One of the biggest indicators of this, which is fairly obvious, is his physical absence.
He just won’t be around anymore.
If you recently started dating, you’ll notice he isn’t showing up anywhere you can usually find him—as if he’s hiding out.
Whereas he used to want to hang out on the weekends, now his schedule is full up.
If you’ve been in a relationship with him for a while, it’ll be pretty jarring the way he’s suddenly spending all of his time away from you now.
He won’t even elaborate on why.
This is a red flag with Cancers.
When they’re happy with someone, they want to be around them as much as they can.
You can really tell the difference when they’re not, because they simply go ghost.
He Might Be Gentle and Caring, But Still Absent
When a Cancer man is over you, it doesn’t mean he has zero empathy for you.
Even though he’s been trying to detach emotionally (and doing a bang-up job of acting like he doesn’t care), a part of him does care about what goes on in your life.
He’s not as stony as he seems.
If you cry in front of him, your pain will move him to tears.
But—the thing is—he’ll still be gone tomorrow morning.
You’ll know the Cancer man feels ready to be done if he has sympathy for you, but he remains unreachable.
This is him protecting himself.
If he doesn’t keep his distance, he might make the mistake of getting back together with you out of guilt.
That would be wrong, and it wouldn’t sustain a relationship anyway.
He’s Easily Irritated Around You
If the Cancer man hasn’t officially broken up with you yet, he’ll be in a weird place emotionally.
He’s aware that breaking up would cause you pain, which he doesn’t want.
Yet following his own desires would do just that.
The conflicting feelings wage an internal battle, and you can tell by how unstable his moods get.
Often, this manifests as him being grouchy.
He manages to get all bent out of shape over the littlest things.
You might feel like you’re walking on eggshells with him.
Is it him, or is it you?
There’s no rational explanation for him being such a jerk.
Well, there is an explanation—
That he’s unconsciously reacting to an urge to cut ties with you, which he has thus far avoided doing.
He Blames You for Silly Stuff
As the Cancer man gets grumpier, he gets more argumentative.
Like a rebellious teenager.
He starts blaming you for things that have nothing to do with you.
If he’s late to work, he’ll get mad at you for texting him in the morning.
He’ll say you slowed him down.
It’s childish and often downright silly, the way he hurls accusations.
But his finger-pointing is a product of his guilt over wanting to leave.
It’s easier being upset with you.
Closed-Off Body Language
A Cancer man’s body language shows his feelings very clearly.
It’s like a direct line to his emotions.
His folded arms across his chest, his lack of eye contact, the blank look on his face—
They all speak volumes, even if he won’t say a word.
Speaking of eye contact, he’ll face away from you when you talk to him so that he doesn’t have to look you in the eye.
It makes him feel vulnerable, and vulnerability is something that goes together with an emotional connection for a Cancer man.
He can’t risk seeming open toward you even for a moment when he’s trying to disconnect.
Secretiveness
Secretive behavior is another red flag for a Cancer man.
He won’t tell you where he’s going when he’s heading out.
Or he’ll be so vague that you won’t have an actual answer.
Not necessarily because he’s doing something shady.
He might be going to his buddy’s house to play video games on Nintendo Switch.
It’s just, he doesn’t want you keeping tabs on him.
He wants the freedom that comes with invisibility.
Lying
It’s crappy, but you may not be able to trust what a Cancer man tells you if he doesn’t want to be with you anymore.
He’ll tell you what he thinks you want to hear to avoid a confrontation.
No, he’s not interested in someone else, or so he says.
Yes, everything is fine (it’s not).
A Cancer man will lie to keep you out of his emotional life.
I’m not saying that’s OK, or even that he’s chasing another woman.
You really don’t know because Cancer men will lie for dumb reasons when they’re afraid of you getting too close.
Either way, don’t accept a lie.
If a Cancer man can’t face you to say what he really wants, you need to think about whether it’s really worth suffering over.
He Doesn’t Text
Cancers usually are very responsive to texts and other forms of communication from their partners.
But trying to talk to a Cancer man who’s over it is like screaming at a wall.
He’ll be extremely hesitant to reply to your texts.
If he does at all.
When he does, his replies will be so short and blah, it’ll be almost pointless.
He’s just not going to give you a lot to go on.
He Doesn’t Reciprocate Your Affection
If you say something sweet or call the Cancer man by a pet name, he won’t do it back.
In all likelihood, he might ignore it and pretend he didn’t hear it.
The power of denial is strong with Cancers.
If he used to call you “Babe,” he’ll call you by your first name now.
And you can be sure that he won’t initiate any affectionate behaviors with you.
Your Cancer will avoid being hugged, touched or given any type of physical affection.
If you do manage to hug him, he’ll stiffen up like a board.
It’ll be so painfully obvious that he doesn’t want the physical contact.
He Avoids Talking to You About Breaking Up
Ugh. Why do Cancers do this—not tell you they want to break up and instead drag it out for months?
Well, I can tell you, actually.
It’s because they hate confrontation.
Pure and simple.
They’re extremely emotional, which makes them bad at defending their thoughts and opinions with any kind of rationality on the spot.
Which makes them feel unprepared to explain why they want to break up in the first place.
Don’t they need to justify their feelings??
They don’t realize that wanting to break up is valid enough.
On top of that, they start imaging your reaction to getting broken up with.
The emotional outpouring.
The tears.
It’s too much for the Cancer man to bear, or so he thinks.
He can’t take the thought of hurting you so badly by breaking up with you, so he just…doesn’t.
At least not with words.
He’ll just keep ignoring you and acting like a jerk.
Cancers, amiright?
He Says He Can’t Be With You Anymore
Maybe the Cancer man does tell you he doesn’t want to be together.
He may not say anything more than he’s just not ready for a relationship right now.
But that will be your cue.
He says this with the expectation that you’ll immediately stop talking to him.
Even if he didn’t say what he actually wants from you.
A Cancer man is awful at communicating his desires.
Partly because he feels bad about them.
So in order to avoid hurting you too much, he’ll do the “It’s not you, it’s me” thing.
But he’ll sure be vague and confusing about it.
The More You Push, the More He Resists
If you’re getting the feeling that your Cancer man wants to break up, you’re probably doing what you can to save the relationship.
Yet his attitude doesn’t change.
When he’s sure he doesn’t want to be together, your efforts will go without any thanks or appreciation.
As a matter of fact, he’ll probably be more irritable because he’ll see this as pressuring him.
When he’s resisting getting closer to you or repairing any issues between you, it show that he really is feeling done with it.
He Blocks You
After a breakup, a Cancer man puts the final nail in the coffin by blocking you on any and all channels.
On all social media platforms, on his phone and anywhere else you might reach him.
There’s no other way to read this sign.
He’s trying to make a clean, permanent break at this point.
Does the “No Contact Rule” with Cancer Man Work?
Sometimes a Cancer man does the no-contact thing to create some space.
This is not always a surefire sign that he’s done with you.
Sometimes after spending time apart, a Cancer man will be able to get back in touch with his real feelings about you.
He may realize that he doesn’t want to be without you.
If that happens, then he’ll message you to ask for another shot at the relationship.
If you’re the one who asks for no contact, it won’t make a Cancer man who really wants to end things rethink his decision.
It’s the equivalent of ignoring the Cancer man in hopes that he’ll come back, which doesn’t really work.
The only time no contact might help to reinvigorate your relationship is if the Cancer man is genuinely confused about how he feels.
The space can give him clarity and reset him emotionally.
But you won’t know if it’ll work until he contacts you.
Or doesn’t.
Keep in mind, it’s not a good idea to break a no-contact rule that a Cancer man has put in place.
That would cause him to shut down completely as he feels his boundaries are being crossed.
Bottom line: No contact only works if the Cancer man thinks he still might want to be together, and you don’t break it before he’s ready.
Can You Save the Relationship When a Cancer Man Wants Out?
If you want to save your relationship with a Cancer man, the only chance you have is to give him space first, and offer emotional support later.
When he’s distancing himself from you, continuing to text him and ask him what’s wrong will alienate him from you further.
At this point in time, all you can do is give him the space he needs.
In a few weeks, you can text him to let him know you’d like to talk if he’s open to it.
But if he doesn’t respond—or he blocks you—I’d take that as a sign to leave things at that.
You can’t force a crab to let you in.
It has to be on their terms only.
I wrote about getting a Cancer man back in this guide, so check it out if you want to know.
Frequently Asked Questions About Cancer Men
Will a Cancer man regret leaving you?
Being swamped with emotions all the time, Cancer men have a tendency to miss their exes.
A Cancer man might regret leaving you when he thinks about the positives of your relationship.
His sentimental nature makes it hard for him to detach completely.
Do Cancers get back with their ex?
Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t.
Cancers can be fickle.
They might say they’d never get back together with an ex, then secretly start messaging them and spying on their socials.
A Cancer is more likely to get back with their ex if they feel like the situation is going to be more stable this time.
Any traumas from the relationship that haven’t been dealt with must be, or the Cancer won’t come back.
Signs a Cancer man is seeing someone else
A Cancer man might be seeing someone else if you can’t reach him for large chunks of time.
He doesn’t answer texts and he has a lame excuse for why when you ask him about it.
He’ll try to create a private environment with this other person where he can lead a separate existence with them.
When he says he has to suddenly go out of town for the weekend, it’s possible he’s meeting up with someone else.
It’ll be consistent when these things happen.
And he’ll keep having excuses that are thin and flimsy.
Recommended Article: Do Cancer Men Cheat?
When does a Cancer man start losing interest?
It’s a sign of a Cancer man losing interest when he stops communicating with you.
Usually, Cancer men are responsive over text and will try to see you as much as they can when they’re interested.
When they’re not, they all but disappear.
How does a Cancer end a relationship?
Messily.
Cancerians’ resistance to breaking things off definitively causes a lot of confusion.
They stop being their caring, nurturing selves with you and show you more coldness and rudeness.
They make themselves difficult to deal with.
It would probably be better for everyone if they would just say they want to break up.
How do Cancer men act when heartbroken?
Cancer men hole up in their apartments when they’re heartbroken.
They listen to the saddest music they can find and don’t talk to anyone.
Not even their moms.
They don’t go out with their friends while they’re deep in the throes of heartbreak.
If they do go out, they tend to act a little wild and not like themselves.
It takes a while for them to adjust.
When they do start feeling more stable, they will gradually get back into their normal routines.
How do Cancers act when they love someone?
When Cancers love you, they’re extremely affectionate.
They touch you constantly and they do favors for you regularly.
Their instinct to mother you goes into overdrive.
They can even be a little smothering.
Recommended Article: 20 Clear Signs a Cancer Man Has Feelings for You
How do you know if a Cancer man is emotionally attached to you?
You know when a Cancer man is attached emotionally because he shares things with you that bother him.
He texts you when he’s having a bad day so you can cheer him up.
You know what’s going on in his personal life.
These signs point to the fact that he relies on you for support, meaning he’s attached to you.
When a Cancer man feels betrayed?
If you’ve betrayed a Cancer man, he’s going to want to know why.
It’ll obviously hurt him deeply, and he’ll push you away as in initial response.
But at some point he’s going to want to know what happened from your side of things.
He needs the closure.
Even it hurts to hear.
How long does it take for a Cancer man to miss you
It might not take long at all for a Cancer man to start missing you.
Then again, it could be years before he starts getting regretful over losing you.
It can strike at any time with a Cancer man.
His feelings can change quickly and without warning.
It can take just one good memory of you to start a chain reaction of sentimental thoughts that develop into real feelings again.
I'm a professional astrologer and psychology enthusiast. I offer lots of free relationship advice and astrology dating tips as well as private consultations at decodethezodiac.com.