How to block your ex on all platforms

Instagram is usually the highest-traffic grief loop, so start here. Open their profile, tap the three dots in the top-right corner, and select 'Block.' You will be asked whether to block just them or also any new accounts they create. Choose both. This removes your posts from their view and theirs from yours. They cannot see your Stories, your Reels, or your grid. You disappear from each other's follower lists entirely.

A few things that trip people up: blocking does not delete direct message threads on your end. You have to do that separately. Go to your DMs, swipe left on the conversation, and delete it. Do it now, not later.

Also: if you have any mutual followers you know are actively sharing updates between you, consider whether those accounts need a soft mute too. You cannot always control the relay race, but you can slow it down.

Facebook requires a few more steps because the platform holds more shared history. Start with the block: go to their profile, click the three dots below their cover photo, and select 'Block.' This removes the friend connection, hides you from each other in search, and prevents them from tagging you going forward.

Then deal with the archive. Go to Settings, then 'Your Facebook Information,' then 'Activity Log.' Filter by 'Photos and Videos' or 'Tags' to find posts where you appear together. You can remove tags from your own profile without deleting the post from theirs.

Research on Facebook use after breakups is clear: checking an ex's profile prolongs distress significantly. Not a little. Significantly. The block is not a statement. It is a circuit breaker. If blocking feels too final for your situation, the Restricted list is a middle option, it keeps the connection but hides everything you post from them unless you mark it public, though it does not stop you from seeing their content, so it only solves half the problem.

Go through every app on your phone where your ex exists and make a decision on each one. Here is the process for the most common ones.

TikTok: Go to their profile, tap the three dots, tap 'Block.' Their account disappears from your For You Page and they lose access to yours.

Snapchat: Press and hold their name in your contacts, tap 'More,' then 'Block.' This removes the friendship and any ongoing streaks. Yes, streaks. Delete the number.

Twitter/X: Go to their profile, tap the three dots, tap 'Block.' Their tweets disappear from your timeline and they cannot see yours or interact with your posts.

LinkedIn: This one people forget. If you are connected, go to their profile, click 'More,' then 'Report/Block.' A former partner watching your professional updates is its own specific discomfort.

Threads, BeReal, any newer platforms you both used: same logic, same steps. Go through them all in one sitting. It takes about twenty minutes total and you will not have to think about it again.

Blocking on social platforms is the visible part. The quieter work is your phone.

On iPhone: Open Messages, find the conversation, tap their name at the top, tap 'info,' scroll down and tap 'Block this Caller.' This blocks both calls and texts. On Android the steps vary slightly by manufacturer, but you are looking for 'Block number' in your Phone or Messages app settings.

WhatsApp: Open the chat, tap their name, scroll down to 'Block.' Their messages will stop coming through and they will not be able to see your status or last seen.

For iMessage specifically: blocking through your phone settings handles this automatically.

One practical note: if you share children, a lease, or any ongoing legal or financial matter with this person, you may need to keep one channel open for logistics. In that case, keep only the most formal channel, usually text or email, and consider having a trusted friend aware of those communications if the contact feels destabilizing.

Email is the adult version of leaving a door unlocked. Go to your email provider and either block their address or set up a filter that moves any incoming messages from them directly to a folder you check once a week, or never.

In Gmail: Open a message from them (or compose a search for their address), click the three dots, select 'Filter messages like these,' then choose 'Delete it' or 'Skip the inbox.' In Outlook, right-click their name and select 'Block.' Apple Mail has similar options under Mail Preferences.

Then go through shared digital accounts. Streaming services, grocery apps with shared lists, photo storage like Google Photos or iCloud shared albums, any app where your content still lives together. Leave shared albums. Remove yourself from shared playlists on Spotify if you know you will check who is listening. These feel small and they are not small.

Change any passwords on accounts they had access to. This is not about suspicion. It is about closing a chapter cleanly.