We’ve all been there – you’ve just started listening to ‘Stick Season’ by Noah Kahan without turning into an emotional wreck when BAM, you walk into your first seminar for the semester and are greeted by the very person you swore to never see again… your ex-partner.

How do you approach this awkward and painful scenario? Here are a few general tips and tricks to help you along the way….

1) Do not sit near them. If you sit near them, they will attempt to talk to you, and that freshly healed wound will rip right open again. Do not sit in their general proximity either, as they’ll attempt to speak just loud enough for you to hear all about their skiing holiday in Japan which you were meant to go on.

2) When the seminar break commences, get out of that room as fast as you can. Go to the bathroom and count down the minutes. If your former partner is the same sex as you, it is recommended you lock yourself in a cubicle just to be safe. DO NOT re-enter the seminar room until the break is over. Your ex-partner will be watching the door like a hawk, waiting for an opportunity to pounce. Don’t give them the satisfaction - wait until the break is over to re-enter the room.

3) Now we must prepare for the worst. There’s a small chance they will approach you after the seminar and introduce you to their new partner. You can avoid this by sitting next to the door and exiting as soon as the seminar leader goes to say ‘thanks for attending’.

If you get trapped near the front, this encounter could go one of two ways. The new partner will either be twice the person you were and, yep you guessed it, you’ll be crying to ‘Stick Season’ on the bus ride home; or you’ll discover your former partner settled for the first person they met on Hinge, and you’ll happily be singing ‘Haven’t Met You Yet’ by Michael Buble on the bus ride home.