Should you respond when he goes silent after you disagree

A real cooling off period happens after you both speak your minds. He says what he thinks, you say what you think, and then you both step back. Silent treatment is different. It's him deciding that your disagreement was wrong and shutting down contact until you fix it.

The timing matters. If he went quiet during the conversation, that's one thing. But if he responded normally and then went silent an hour or six hours later, he chose to punish you. He's not processing. He's sending a message that having a different opinion costs you his attention.

First, you need to show the silent treatment won't work. That means you're not chasing him, not apologizing for your view, and not pretending you were wrong. If you fold, he knows this tactic works and he'll use it every time you disagree.

Second, you give him a way back that doesn't involve you taking it all back. You can acknowledge you see it differently. You can even say the disagreement matters or that you want to understand his side. But you don't make him right and you don't make the silence acceptable. The message needs to feel like an opening, not a surrender.

Don't text back today. Sleep on it. In the morning, decide whether this is someone whose silence is worth your energy. If you're texting someone, you're choosing to do it. Make that choice conscious.

If you decide to send something, do it in daylight and keep it short. One solid message. Not five. Not 'I guess you're ignoring me now.' If he doesn't reply within a day or two after that, stop. You've shown you're willing to talk. The next move is his. If he stays silent, that's him showing you who he is. Watch what he does more than what he says.