My girlfriend and I recently took a weekend trip to Newport, Rhode Island to celebrate our second anniversary. We’ve both been training for a half marathon we’re running together, though she’s a bit ahead of me in progress. We decided to do a run while we were away.

The plan was that she would run the first five miles on her own, and then I’d meet up with her to run the last four miles together on the Cliff Walk. I helped map out the route and dropped her off at the starting point. While she was running those first five miles, I parked along the way, honked, and cheered her on as she passed a couple of times—just trying to be supportive and make her feel encouraged.

After we finished the run together, we were walking around looking for lunch. I asked her if she’d expected me to show up and cheer the way I did. She said she hadn’t, but she appreciated it. I said that kind of support had meant a lot to me when I trained for marathons in the past—my mom and sister had both done the same kind of thing for me.

And that’s when everything shifted.

She went completely silent. We walked in awkward silence for about 20 minutes. I tried to sit with her on a bench and gently ask what was wrong, but she just said she was “fine.” Eventually, after we got some food and were driving, she said something like, “It’s just really deflating.” She explained that we’ve been going through a rough patch and she often feels underprioritized in our relationship. And that on a day meant for us, she felt blindsided that I brought up my family—especially people she feels distant or conflicted about.

Some context: She never got to meet my mom (she passed), and she has some strong, unspoken issues with my sister—mainly feeling like my sister is absent from my life but still has a big personality that looms large. I get that mentioning my mom and sister might be sensitive for her. But I wasn’t trying to compare anyone or make her feel lesser. I was just trying to explain where my instinct to cheer her on came from.

The rest of the day felt strained, even though we had another activity planned. She often says she values actions more than words, and I thought my actions that morning were exactly that—supportive. But then the mention of my family made it feel like all of that was wiped away.

So… AITA for bringing up my mom and sister in a positive light during what was supposed to be a meaningful moment for us, knowing she’s sensitive about those topics? Or is she being unfair in how she reacted?