Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Help me articulate the mental load

12 replies

Themetalloadarticulated · 01/12/2024 21:29

I am so pissed off with my DH and the resentment is bubbling over to an overpowering rage against bloody all men. I’m just so fed up with exhausting myself emotionally and physically, carrying the mental load. It’s been a particularly bad week as he has been busy with work, but he really doesn’t get that I’m balancing a full time job and doing everything else. He is pretty good at cleaning kitchen and putting some washes on, also we share school runs. However, this is still seen as “helping me”, he by all accounts feels like an amazing father and husband and can’t get what my problem is. When I do try and speak to him, I get stonewall silence or eyerolls at what he thinks are my hormones. I can’t articulate why I’m so pissed off.I feel like he is gaslighting me and I feel so frustrated, angry and I just want to scream at how unjust it all is and I want to be bloody heard! Normally I just troop on but it’s a ridiculously busy time of year. Just wanted some solidarity that I’m not going mad but this time
of year is often so hard for women and how would you articulate it to my DH?!!

OP posts:
KatyN · 01/12/2024 21:32

Can you just give him responsibilities and step away?
My husband does food and finance. I never ever think about them (as jobs, I eat and spend money)
Similarly he does not think about clubs and school admin,

Releasing the mental load is really hard but I'm not sure you can explain it by just talking.

Delorian · 01/12/2024 21:33

There is a book and a card system that helps I believe. But I suspect it's short term and it reverts back eventually.

I think telling other people what DH is responsible, ensuring he's in earshot works a bit. So when the teacher asks for you to remember X just say "oh DH deals with that". Tell all the other parents too so you're not the one feeling bad when it doesn't happen.

NuffSaidSam · 01/12/2024 21:40

List everything and then ask him which half he wants to do.

I'd tell him how overwhelmed you are and how you need to split things more evenly, make the list together and go through and re-share the tasks. Do this positively together without blame or pointing fingers.

If he is unwilling to do this rethink your relationship.

catsnore · 01/12/2024 22:03

Things that have semi worked in my house:

Start handing stuff back to him. So for example, if you buy any of his family's Christmas presents etc - stop. Tell him he is responsible for that (ditto birthdays etc). Split other Xmas responsibilities between you in a fair way. So if you have to do the food shop - he cleans the house or whatever.

Make a list of all the other one off jobs that need doing soon and put it up somewhere prominent. We have a chalk board in the kitchen. It's not any one person's responsibility- but everyone can add to or cross off when done. I find people are more willing to do things when they aren't being told by someone but it's just there. It also takes away your need to manage the list.

Sit down family meeting with list of chores. Kids take responsibility for something in return for pocket money/stickers/sweets or whatever. The rest is split fairly between you reflecting workload and time at home etc. You can get apps that help with this although a lot of them are annoying. Ensure this includes things like food shopping, admin, taxi runs and so on. It's not just housework. Allow things to fail. Run out of milk? Did you not buy enough? Ah shame. Walk off.

In the evenings, when there are certain things that need doing, say things like 'do you want to do the washing up or bath the kids?'. He has a choice and it makes it obvious what needs doing, and it's neutral because you're not telling him what to do.

If he wont get on board with any of that stuff, tell him he needs to pay for a cleaner/housekeeper to help organise everything and keep the house running smoothly.

Otherwise obviously LTB 😂

Alwayslurkingsometimesposting · 01/12/2024 22:07

I feel for you OP- stonewalling and eye rolling are really destructive for relationships. Eye rolling in particular is a sign of contempt. You've had good advice from pp about dropping the rope to even up the mental load but I would also like to validate that the way he's communicating with you is horrible, so no wonder you're feeling horrible!

coxesorangepippin · 01/12/2024 22:08

I've started quiet quitting on stuff

And then when he asks if I've done/if we have / when are we doing XYZ, I reply:

Oh really, yeah we should
Oh I don't know
Oh yeah
I forgot

Etc etc ad infinitum

Winelasagne · 01/12/2024 22:10

Sadly he probably isn’t ever going to take the lead so sit and write a list of stuff he needs to do to help. For example get him to help with xmas shopping and wrapping, and any other bits you need. Sadly with some men if you don’t ask you don’t get. It shouldnt be that way but he is obviously needing to be told!

Blackcat50 · 01/12/2024 22:24

Have you come across this?

english.emmaclit.com/2017/05/20/you-shouldve-asked/

C152 · 01/12/2024 22:31

Blackcat50 · 01/12/2024 22:24

I was just going to suggest this! Her cartoons are brilliant!

laalaaleelee · 02/12/2024 14:41

This account is great, some practical suggestions for how to bring the subject up and do something about it:

www.instagram.com/ourhomeflows?igsh=aXN5aTBmeTRvdWNv

ExquisiteDecorations · 02/12/2024 15:07

I do know how you feel, 10 years ago I could have written your post. Things are better now, with hindsight I think some of the feelings were down to hormones but I didn't know that at the time. Also as the DCs have grown up some of it has fallen away which helps. But that isn't helpful now.

Practically speaking what has helped is, gradually shifting more of the housework onto him, I do the more detailed occasional stuff, he does nearly all the day to day vacuuming, kitchen, bins etc.

The quiet quitting / allowing things to fail thing, if he asks which bin it is that week I just say I don't know, previously I would have been looking it up on the council website for him. Letting stuff run out. Not doing cards and gifts for his family, or reminding him to do them. Not doing meal planning etc. If we both come home from work it is not my sole responsibility to have thought of what's for dinner.

Acceptance that to some extent we do need to play to our strengths, I am much better at admin than him (and not just through practice, I think he's neurodivergent) but he will do the housework, dirty and heavy jobs etc.

Acceptance that sometimes I am overly perfectionist, so when car insurance runs out he'll do a quick compare the market, whereas I will will do that one, probably other comparison sites, consult Martin Lewis, delve deep into all the differences between policies but probably only save a very few more £ than he does and feel shattered and overwhelmed from the effort.

He will also do specific, one-off admin things, such as booking holidays, sorting travel insurance etc, which I used to do all of but now ask him to do. When I first tried offloading these it was no good as he'd just say well where do you want to go, now I just say, I don't know, you do a bit of research and make some suggestions and I'll see what I think of them. It floored him a bit at first but he's got the idea now.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page