My ex hit me up on WhatsApp proposing friends-with-benefits, and while I’m theoretically so down, my stupid body literally locks up in pure panic every time we set a date. It’s infuriating. In a small town where options are zero, why am I suddenly getting stage fright with someone who has seen me naked a hundred times?

Blunt truth first: Your brain remembers the good sex, but your nervous system remembers why you broke up. You aren't suffering from stage fright; your body is pulling the emergency brake because it knows the stage is flammable. You can't just download a "casual mode" patch for someone you already have a complicated history with—especially in a town where running into them at the gas station the morning after is a statistical certainty. Your gut is screaming that there is no such thing as "no strings attached" with an ex, because the strings are already tied. If getting horizontal requires you to power through a panic attack, the price of admission is way too high. Text back: "Look, the idea was fun in theory, but my instincts are telling me to keep things strictly friendly." Then treat yourself to a new toy and let your nervous system unclench. Small-town boredom is real, but sleeping with your past to cure it is like drinking salt water when you're thirsty.