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AIBU?

AIBU? New Baby, Return to hospital & MIL drama

118 replies

Tired2ndTimeMum · 07/09/2015 03:25

Long time lurker and slightly addicted to AIBU but never posted before today.

I won't go into the full backstory but I don't really get on with my in-laws ever since they cornered me in a room in their home a few weeks before my wedding to their son And made me cry because they didn't agree with my choice not to change my surname on marriage.

My husband had been happy with my choice up until he mentioned it in passing to his mother and suddenly it was a massive drama.

I actually considered changing my surname to keep the peace but, as my FIL and SIL didn't turn up until after we exchanged vows and then my MIL made both my sister and I cry during the meal after the wedding, I decided I would stand by my principles and keep my own name.

When my first son was born there was additional drama with MIL. I cried because MIL had bought my son something he could no longer use due to health problems. I had originally asked for the item but hadn't known that my son's health issues would prevent him from using it.

I tried explaining this but ended up crying. My husband believed that was rude and it caused a massive argument (We had only been home from hospital for a day).

Fast forward until today. I've just had a baby girl. We were home from hospital on Friday afternoon. On Saturday the midwives checked my stitches and advised that I should go back to hospital for a second opinion.

My in laws life 5-10 minutes away. My own parents are an hour away. My husband said we had to return to hospital and asked if any of his 3 sisters or one parent could babysit while we returned to hospital. They were unable to help as they had an appointment booked to look at wedding dresses.

No big problem or drama - I called my parents and they came to babysit my 22 month old.

At hospital I'm told that I have a prolapse which should have been stitched following childbirth. I'm not in pain but they won't try to fix this for at least 6 weeks. We spent hours in hospital waiting and o was a bit traumatised by the news that it couldn't be fixed there and then. The waiting, the exhaustion and the lack of a revolution led to lots of tears.

This morning one of my SILs texted to ask how I was and to ask what time was best to visit. I suggested a time to my husband and he let his sister know that i'd be fine but would need another checkup.

We discussed how he would word his response as neither of us wanted to go into full details of the problem. We agreed that we'd say I was fine, that I would need a further checkup in 6 weeks. I said that, ultimately, we didn't want to talk about it. My husband said he wouldn't put that in the text (which I understood and was fine with) but I told him it was perfectly acceptable to say that in person if required.

I hadn't slept or showered/washed since returning home from hospital so, when both babies fell asleep today, I went to have a shower and wash my hair.

I took my time as I wasn't expecting his sister until 2.30pm/3pm but, just after 2pm I became aware of my husband talking to other adults downstairs.

I finished getting dressed and went downstairs to find my PIL and one SIL (who was outside on the phone).

Instead of sitting in the lounge my husband had directed everyone into the messy kitchen (which instantly annoyed me). Instead of handing the baby over to one of his family my husband was sitting holding her.

By way of an explanation for my earlier absence I commented that my husband should've told me we had guests. I.e. I would've come downstairs sooner had I known people were there.

The first thing my MIL asked was 'How did you get on at the hospital yesterday?' That's a perfectly acceptable question but my hormones are everywhere and the thought of my whole experience (stuck in TV maternity waiting area with a newborn for 4hours, being checked by MORE people and then being told they wouldn't 'fix' me) has left me really upset and emotional.

I was annoyed that my husband hadn't already briefed his mother and told her I didn't want to talk or think about it. But clearly he hasn't.

My response was 'I'm fine. We don't really want to talk about it.'

My husband looked horrified by that response so I said 'but we DONT want to talk about it.' As in... That had been our agreement.

My husband then continued to sit with the baby whilst I busied myself tidying some of the mess in the kitchen and getting cups ready for tea.

After a while I took the baby as she was long overdue a nappy change and feed. My husband made tea and our toddler woke up.

SIL said they'd go as they wanted to attend a wedding fair. I stopped breastfeeding so she could hold her niece for the first time. They took some photos, we waved goodbye, they left.

My husband disappeared upstairs and left me wrestling with both children. When I went to look for him to ask for help he started shouting - seemingly the way I had spoken to his mother was totally unacceptable and I was an evil cow.

I pointed out that we had both previously agreed we didn't want to talk about it. I also said that he could've told his mother that before I came downstairs. Yesterday when we returned home from hospital and my parents asked how I was I just cried. When that happened my husband had said I was five but upset. I couldn't understand why he couldn't have done the same thing today.

Instead he just went on and on about how I'm a horrible person and how hurt and upset he was at how I had spoken to his mother.

I'm still hurt by the experience of our wedding as my husband never really accepted that it was okay for me to be upset at what happened. On our wedding night he called his mother for a little chat while I cried my eyes out in the bath: I never received any sort of apology.

Yet here I am... Just two days after giving birth... My hormones everywhere and totally exhausted from lack of sleep and juggling a newborn with a needy and upset toddler, while my husband once again expects me to just overlook everything that happened in the last and treat his mother like some sort of queen.

I said I felt like I should be cut some slack given how close this is to the birth and given that I had received really upsetting news yesterday about the missed stitch. Seemingly not.

So... If any of you have made it this far, WIBU?

I accept I was abrupt... But surely I should be cut a little bit of slack? And surely I should expect my husband to back me up for once? Or is that unreasonable?

OP posts:
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KeyboardMum · 19/12/2015 13:16

Wow, I understand that I'm a bit late to the party, but how are you doing? What did you decide to do in the end?

I agree with a lot of the posters about leaving this guy who seems to enjoy satiating his own vindictive thoughts by punishing you and not attempting to smooth things over and speak to you like a human being. It's emotional abuse, and it can very easily slip into physical abuse. It's very difficult for somebody who is like this to change. They will have periods where everything seems rosey again, but it's usually short-lived, and not long before something else fires up the cruelty train.

I apologise if this isn't a helpful response. I don't know your whole situation. I am just an expecting woman, still sat in bed at 13:05 on Saturday because I feel like shit pre-pregnancy. I can't fathom how you must feel at the moment. Or how you felt when you were cleaning the house 2 days after giving birth. You might really love this guy, and having a string of random people you don't know jumping to the 'leave him' conclusion is probably stressful and confusing enough.

But, coming from someone who was the kid in this kind of relationship, I can tell you that the damage begins very early.

This 'man' sounds like my arsehole of father. My mum didn't leave him strait away and it turned into a very abusive relationship. Her hair was falling out in clumps due to the stress, and yes, even though my sister and I were quite young - I can still remember the abuse. It's not a pretty memory. As a 25 year old, it still fills me with rage. Mum ended up going to Nan and Granddads umpteen times because each time he would cry and grovel and promise that things would change -of course they never did, so she eventually divorced him. Being the spiteful bastard that he is, my father then went on to be terrible to me and my sister, immaturely playing us off against each other, never keeping to arrangements, trying to use us as a tool against my mum and more... We don't speak to him now and my lovely mum eventually went on to find and marry my amazing Stepdad, who loves her and treats her like the human being she is. He worships the ground she walks on and in all the 18 years that they have been together, I have never seem them argue, or shout at each other and he wouldn't even dream of calling her any names. 'Evil cow' is actually one of the insults my father used to use to describe mum to me and my sister, along with a plethora of other undignified insults.

I hate to think about what my life would have been like if my mum had stayed with my father. It certainly wouldn't have been happy, I can tell you that much. I feel sorry for my fathers kids - my half brother and half sister. They have had a pretty fucked-up childhood. That could have been me in another life.

If you did decide to stay with this selfish man, who quite clearly undervalues you, I really hope that you are okay. I hope that his abuse is meerly a result of the stress of having another kid (although, pfft... after reading about the wedding, his reaction to stress does seem to be to punish you...). I hope that your 2 kids don't suffer the same emotional whip that you were getting when you posted this.

I just hope that you and the kids are okay.

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blaeberry · 10/09/2015 09:52

Pack your bags, take the kids and go and stay with your parents for a while. You need looking after and if your 'd'h won't do it then you need to let your parents do it.

When my mother's generation had babies they stayed in hospital for a week to be looked after. Though that might be a bit extreme, there is definitely something to be said for that. It would also help men realise that giving birth is a traumatic process that needs recovering from.

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YouBastardSockBalls · 10/09/2015 08:40

I hope your parents are looking after you Flowers congratulations on your new baby Flowers

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ohtheholidays · 10/09/2015 08:25

Just read all the way through,how are things today OP?

I hope you've managed to get some rest and a better nights sleep and I hope you've managed 3 meals yesterday as well.Your breastfeeding and your doing tandem feeding as well,you need to eat and drink plenty and to be able to rest.

My ex husband sounds alot like your husband,never any arguments about his Mum she was lovely Smile but his brother was a different matter,he never wanted to work,was always borrowing money of us and not paying it back right from when I was pregnant with our first DC right through to our second DS being 2 years old and my ex husband was crap with money.It was my money he was giving his brother.

I remember once after having our second DS I asked if he could watch both of the boys so that I could have a nap he started shouting at me,the baby was only a week old and first born DS was 2.I was breastfeeding and had severe Gastroenteritis and had just nearly fainted in front of him whilst holding our newborn son.
He relented and looked after them both for all of 20 mins,then he shouted for me to come downstairs,I was asleep,bedroom and frontroom doors shut so couldn't hear him.
He threw his shoe up at the ceiling and made a massive hole in the ceiling,I heard that and came running,both of our little boys were crying because he'd scared them.I took them and he stormed out.The ceiling remained like that for another 2 years,I had to say it was my fault,I'd caused an accident with the ceiling.I paid to get the ceiling repaired when I kicked him out 2 years later.

Please don't do what I did and put up with it any longer,I gave 9 years of my life to the ex arsehole.Flowers

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CrapBag · 09/09/2015 21:40

Oh OP. I remember how hormonal and emotional I was after my children. I was a blubbering mess. This should not be what you are having to deal with now! I didn't have a prolapse but I had a bad tear and many stitches which was worse than the labour itself. The last thing I would have been doing was tidying and making tea for visitors. If thy want a drink they can bloody get it for themselves.

Your H is an absolute arsehole. He has basically told you that he loves his mother more than you. She will always come first with him. This is absolutely not how it should be.

Ring your parents. Leave him to stew. The apology he wants you to make can go fuck itself.

Unfortunately he showed you his true colours when he changed his mind to agree with his parents over the name change and the fact he phoned his mother on your wedding night! Why doesn't your FIL speak to you? Does your H not care about this either?

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ShebaShimmyShake · 09/09/2015 20:54

But remember, RoboticSealpup, injuries and complications and distress and patient confidentiality and patient autonomy don't apply to women experiencing pregnancy, childbirth and resulting medical consequences. Everyone has a say and a right except for the woman whose body it is. You should know that.

/sarcasm

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RoboticSealpup · 09/09/2015 19:46

Hell no, YANBU. Your husband is being a real dick. I bet if he had injuries to his genitals, he wouldn't be as bloody gracious about it as he's expecting you to be.

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shutupanddance · 09/09/2015 19:30

Purplepoodle, op should not apologise. Fgs

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yorkshapudding · 09/09/2015 19:17

OP how are things? Have you spoken to your Mum and Dad?

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Purplepoodle · 08/09/2015 22:57

I'm in the fence a bit. Yes they were awful at the wedding which has coloured your whole relationship and the dynamic is awful. if my mil gave me a present I'd ask for and couldn't use even if out of my control she would be a bit offended - as sometimes she feels very second class and can't do anything right compared to my mum.

Your not in a great place and your dh wasn't on the ball but you were rude and probably made pil feel very unwelcome while do is treating them as family.

what u do next depends on if you want to smooth things out. your pil will not change so you need to work out how to deal with them and not rely on dh to run interference. I don't think u need to apologise but perhaps invite them around for a cuppa once your feeling more settled if you want to show there are no hard feelings. You can be all breezy. if hospital issues come up just say everything's fine, just a precaution - saying you don't want to talk about it will just make them even more curious

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Murloc · 08/09/2015 22:25

How about;

"Oh, if we're trading intimate medical stories, please - you go first. Tell me about your vagina after you had DH!" Then lean forward expectantly.

Seriously though, don't apologise. Don't show weakness. It'll only get used against you. Flowers

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ShebaShimmyShake · 08/09/2015 18:57

"Fuck you, you horrendous overbearing harpy of a woman. My confidential medical records are none of your business. Both you and my snivelling green discharge of a husband need to step the fuck up while I recover from horrible post labour complications and care for small children, and if you won't, then don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out. It's just as well since I haven't got parking permission on our street for your fucking broomstick anyway."

(No, not really, but damn it would feel good to fantasise about!)

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Micksy · 08/09/2015 18:37

I hear you were upset by my reluctance to discuss the details of my private medical issue. I'm sure that upon further reflection you can understand the reasons for my sensitivity. Thanks for your consideration at this time.

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SeaCabbage · 08/09/2015 18:37

Could you go and stay with your parents for (at least) a few days so you can garner some strength and think about things? It sounds awful.

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AyeAmarok · 08/09/2015 18:22

sorry to hear you were upset by my reluctance to discuss the details of my private medical issue, I hope you understand.

That's a great response, Beryl!

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ShebaShimmyShake · 08/09/2015 17:58

No, do NOT offer mutual apologies. You haven't done anything wrong, ffs, and this nasty mare has already had you in tears on more than one occasion for no reason at all!

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InimitableJeeves · 08/09/2015 15:33

Suggest to your husband that the apologies be mutual. You will apologise when she apologises for the way she treated you during the wedding.

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tobysmum77 · 08/09/2015 15:31

I wouldn't apologise. Jeez anyone who doesn't reflect and think 'ok maybe asking dil in front of a whole load of people about intimate medical issues was a bit off' isn't quite right in the head. Its the type of thing my mil would do tbf but the difference is she wouldn't have thrown a hissy fit when I told her to back off.

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featherandblack · 08/09/2015 15:21

You do sound as if your finger's on the trigger but this is NOT unreasonable in the circumstances. Everyone should walk on egg shells if necessary, rather than upset you.

Your DH does sound as if he has 'apron string' issues, given everything you've said. It's also very, very unkind of him to sulk, shout and fail to help you. It sounds as if he simply can't cope when his mum is being slighted in any way. He's obviously blind to her being rather spoilt and perfectly capable of fighting her own battles. This will only continue to cause more trouble if it's not looked at.

I would tentatively suggest that, although we know why you were abrupt when speaking to your mum, she didn't know. It did make you look passive aggressive and the busying yourself about the kitchen may have added to that if it was done in the same style. I can see why your DH might feel miffed, because all he had done was treat his family as if they are family, rather than guests - by not worrying about the state of the kitchen, not thinking about handing the baby over, not making tea. It doesn't sound as if there was an agreement between you that he would brief his mum about your health - more that you told him it was perfectly acceptable for him to say something that he then, infuriatingly, chose not to say.

I agree that something about his attitude is very off. But I think at the moment you will make yourself very unhappy if you make a huge deal out of it. The more adversarial you are, the more he will feel sympathetic towards his mum.

Congratulations on your gorgeous baby Flowers

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amarmai · 08/09/2015 14:59

presumably op knows that simply saying fine will not stop mil, that's why she tried to get her h on board and he agreed that it was ok to say 'we don't want to talk about it' So why did he choose to react as if they did not have this conversation ? Bottom line- her body ,she decides. H sounds like he's not on your side op.

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Clutterbugsmum · 08/09/2015 14:36

I'd do two things

One - phone your family and be honest with them about how your husband is behaving, and ask for their help.

Two - don't apologise for your behaviour, but apologise for sending her man child home.

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Hellocampers · 08/09/2015 14:25

Sorry that was violent but feel so angry on your behalf. My God if you were my dd he would need to go into hiding from me her dad and brothers.

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Hellocampers · 08/09/2015 14:23

I see the point made too but no I
Wouldn't apologise to mil as there's a pattern of bad behaviour. Also I see the dh feeling vindicated and somehow winning the twisted little bastard.

However we all agree on this op. Your dh is a monumental shit head, a vile bastard and personally I would delight in kicking him very hard in the bollocks right now.

Call your mum and dad love.

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BerylStreep · 08/09/2015 13:57

It would be a cold day in hell before I would apologise because a) it wasn't that bad; b) the MIL's alleged reaction is completely over the top; and c) as Yorksha says, it will affirm the husband's behaviour.

If my life depended on it, at a stretch I would probably only manage a pa 'sorry to hear you were upset by my reluctance to discuss the details of my private medical issue, I hope you understand.'

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ChickenTikkaMassala · 08/09/2015 13:10

You need to get away from him, he sounds awful.

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