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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To say "ENOUGH!"

130 replies

pigmcpigface · 16/04/2018 11:19

Ladies, I think I might be on the verge of having a mini-rebellion.

For years, DH has signed us both up to a number of social events involving his friends and family. Despite the fact that these people don't give a flying fuck about me and would drop me like a stone if DH and I split, it has always been that the work of these events falls largely on my shoulders- the cleaning, the washing, the shopping, the organising and preparation of food and events - you name it.

The people involved, especially his family, just expect that all this will be done as a matter of course, because, well, I am the wife. We were recently at a family event, and BIL's partner and I had done literally 90% of the work. "We married well!" BIL said to DH. And the penny suddely dropped about the way that these expectations worked.

DH works more hours and earns more money than I do. He has a much better career. I am not doing as well, but I do have a job, and I'm trying to build a career outside of it also. I have ambitions that I desperately want to achieve. Each time he signs us up to something, it eats into the time and energy I have to do this. So as not to drip-feed, I also feel like there is an element of something a bit abusive about the expectation that I will do these things, because his parents behave pretty badly to me.

AIBU to say "Enough is enough!" I will continue to try to balance his hours/wage with mine by doing more than a 50% share of the housework, but if he wants to do these extra events, then it's up to him to take on 100% of the work associated therewith? He can also look after his own family cards and presents. I'm not going to remind him, nag him, or do that work for him any more. I realise this will make me persona non grata in his family, but I'm pretty much treated that way already, and at least with this decision I get my time back.

I've been partly inspired by this article:

caringlabor.wordpress.com/2010/09/15/silvia-federici-wages-against-housework/

which has given me a sudden rush of blood to the head.

AIBU to do this? Are there things I haven't considered?

OP posts:
Mummyoflittledragon · 16/04/2018 12:28

I agree with Bitoutofpractice. He really doesn’t care. As long as his needs are met and he’s seen to “perform” by his family - both from earning and getting you to do the the grunt work. The mr ‘I am’, that’s all that matters.

Yanbu at all to down tools. I expect in the early days, you took on this role to try to fit in with his family. And it spiralled from there. Know this: the more you do, the more you will be expected to do. And the more you will be despised for taking it on and being able to do it. I’ve been there myself, with a group of friends of dh. I thought by being hospitable and anticipating their every need, they’d like me and be grateful. When in fact, me being so capable and in effect showing them up for their inadequacies (as they weren’t reciprocating) made them dislike me even more.

His family have possibly decided that you and probably sil are inferior simply because you’re not related and on to of this are female. And your bil and dh seem to be buying into this view.

pigmcpigface · 16/04/2018 12:29

"Only thing I can do is make sure my own son isn’t raised that way."

I want to hug you for that. So, so important. Star

OP posts:
SendintheArdwolves · 16/04/2018 12:31

You are completely in the right OP.

You are not his skivvy, nor his social secretary, nor the facilitator of his relationship with his friends/family. You are doubly not this if it comes at the cost of your own personal happiness.

Be warned: he is going to push back against this. HARD.

In his mind, he is completely justified - this is part of your job. The job of wife. He probably doesn't even examine it in his mind, and just vaguely assumes you will do it without it registering as anything he needs to worry about. Much as you would generally assume that if you were in a shop and asked one of the staff which aisle the beans were in, they would tell you. If instead they flung down their pricing gun and shouting "Find them yourself, do I have to do EVERYTHING!" you would think that they were the one being unreasonable.

Maybe, if pushed as to why exactly all this falls to you, he would come up with something like:
"She enjoys it"
"She's better at it than me"
"I wouldn't know where to start"

And then something that is designed to sound like a compliment like "you know how useless men are at that sort of thing, all you'd get would be crisps and beer if you left it to the MEN, hahaha, multitasking, haha, adorably clueless, etc".

But I digress. Pick your guns, OP and stick to them.

  1. Events. You are going to have to be physically not present for the next few, so that you can reset his expectations. Tell him clearly that you aren't attending and you aren't going to help. Then have a few stock phrases for every time he whines/expects you to sort something out: "Mm. That sounds tricky." "Since I'm not going to be there, I'd rather not get involved." "I'm sure you'll sort something out".

And just repeat them. Don't get drawn in, don't give advice, just say the phrase and then change the subject. He may try to needle you about how the marvellous, organised other wives will have to pick up the slack, or how unfair you're being by not helping, or why you're suddenly angry/hate his friends/throwing a strop. Ignore this. He is looking for the right button to press to keep you in line - once he finds it, he will press it relentlessly.

He doesn't need to understand (although he knows full well). He doesn't need to agree with you (although you are in the right). All he needs to do is accept that this is the way things are.

  1. Cards and presents for his family. Again, spell out to him ONCE that this is now his job. "This is the deal - I will do cards and presents for my family, you do it for yours." Then do exactly that.

Again, you will get push back - maybe even from his family. Again, stock responses:
"Speak to DH - he handles all of that"
"Oh really? [turn to DH] You didn't send Aunt Phyllis a card?"
"What a shame that DH forgot"

And then subject change.

...sorry this turned out to be an epic - I'll stop here. Bets of luck OP. Keep us updated Grin

missbonita · 16/04/2018 12:34

DO IT! It's so liberating. I did and I literally don't give a shit that all his family have turned on me to the point where PIL left the house as I arrived home from work (to avoid me) last time they visited, BIL is NC and I received a rage filled phone call from DHs closest friend accusing me of turning DH against him because his kids didn't receive xmas gifts because DH forgot despite me reminding him 2x)

DalmatianSpring · 16/04/2018 12:41

Do it!

MumW · 16/04/2018 12:42

Can you have a word with BiL's partner too, see if you can get her on board?
^This.
Maybe you could broach the subject along the lines of "I'm no longer prepared to be a scivvy for the men and will be stepping back. Just wanted to give you the heads up so that you don't get lumbered with it all"

Also, what exactly do you get out of this relationship? Do you still want to be with him? It sounds as though you would actually have less work to do without him around expecting you to be subservient to him.

He is not supporting you to develop your career, in fact, he's actively sabotaging it. Step back from organising his 'events' and invest the time in your own career. Improving your financial situation will give you the independence to leave, should you choose to.

Flowers
pigmcpigface · 16/04/2018 12:48

I have drafted a letter basically setting out my new position to him:

"I thought I should write you a letter, because I don’t seem to be able to convey to you how I feel verbally, in spite of repeated attempts to get my message across. I don’t know whether it’s that you are too busy to listen, or simply that you do not want to hear. I suspect that, at some level, you have some psychological difficulty in processing anything that is inconvenient for you to recognise, and that this is also why you tune out (even to the point of falling asleep) when you are confronted with anything that requires an emotional response from you.

I am unhappy about the fact that, between us as a couple, the work falls 100% on me. When we are with YOUR parents, YOUR relatives, YOUR friends, I am the one arranging food and alcohol, cooking, making cakes, booking cottages, arranging restaurants etc. etc. etc. Repeatedly, the pattern between us is that you sign us up for events and house guests who involve a great deal of work, and I do that work. It is unequal.

It is especially unequal, and especially unfair in light of the fact that you are unable to do this work because you are pursuing a glittering career, while I have very little in the way of career success. The two things are even causally related - your decision not to do this labour means that it falls to my lot, which prevents me from doing other things that would advance my lot in life. This is true not only of events but of a whole amount of domestic labour that is done every day in the house.

But there are psychological effects to drudgery, as well as temporal ones. Being “the help” is not just boring– it is a constant reminder of a state of affairs in which one exists only as a second-class citizen. Other people are too important to get down on hands and knees and scrub floors, clean toilets, or wash underwear - so it becomes one's lot in life. Retaining a sense of dignity and of purpose in the face of this is difficult in a way that I don’t think you can even imagine.

Part of the issue is that some of this structural and economic dynamic is internalised – the work becomes part of one’s essential being, a constant reminder of an unworthiness that is strongly gendered. In a context where I have spent the last six months living quite literally on a building site, that feeling of denigration has been actualised in the shape of a hostile, noisy and constantly difficult environment.

I feel fundamentally deprioritised, too. You have repeatedly found time, money and energy to celebrate your family's events - like your mother’s 70th birthday - but not my 40th. What is more, with finances being as they are, I've not only given up my birthday, but also the chance of a holiday, so you could celebrate with other people. I feel like I just don't matter.

Finally, drudge work that already has more than a hint of degradation about it is made exponentially more so when the people for whom you are doing it treat you as incompetent and incapable. I am sick and tired of being bossed around by your parents, and treated like I cannot complete the most simple of tasks without unsolicited help and advice. You and your brother both sit by and do absolutely nothing to intervene with behaviour that is fundamentally unacceptable, even though you both fully recognise that the way they speak to and interact with me and BIL's partner is not OK in private.

Given the sacrifices that I have made, I deserve better than this."

OP posts:
pigmcpigface · 16/04/2018 12:50

The odd thing is that I don't actually feel angry about this. I'm a bit cross, a bit upset, but generally I feel quite calm...

OP posts:
Mummyoflittledragon · 16/04/2018 12:53

It’s too long. Now time to shorten it. He probably won’t get past the first paragraph, which is not what you want as he’ll see it as a criticism and bin it off. Good to get your feelings out though.

Spaghettijumper · 16/04/2018 12:57

TBH I think you should shorten that letter to:

You treat me like shit. I'm leaving.

onalongsabbatical · 16/04/2018 12:58

Wow, pigmc, that's a brilliant and articulate letter. When are you sending/giving it to him? I'm watching this with interest. You sound extremely competent and now that you've got clarity on your situation I imagine you could run rings round him. Well bloody done!

onalongsabbatical · 16/04/2018 12:59

Ah - differing views on the letter. I guess if he won't read it it's wasted. Will he read it, OP?

BitOutOfPractice · 16/04/2018 13:00

I'd be tempted to say "I'm not doing your drudge work any more and I'm concentrating on my career not yours from now on.There's a longer version if you want it but that's the gist"

BitOutOfPractice · 16/04/2018 13:00

*There's a longer version

SendintheArdwolves · 16/04/2018 13:01

the letter is good, but I would preface it with bullet points (put them at the top as he won't read very far)

  • I will no longer take on responsibility for social events which you organise
  • If you would like to see your family/friends you will have to deal with the logistics
  • I will spend the time I would have spent on advancing my career
BitOutOfPractice · 16/04/2018 13:01

A bit like this telegram

To say "ENOUGH!"
SendintheArdwolves · 16/04/2018 13:03

Remember, the goal is not to get him to agree with you that you are right. The new plan does not require his sign-off, nor does he have the power to veto it. You are INFORMING him, not asking permission.

MrsHathaway · 16/04/2018 13:04

I'm glad you've written that letter for your own sake, but it's too much to send to him: he won't read it all, and he certainly won't digest it all.

I'd cut as follows, to remove most of the feelings and leave in most of the practicalities, because I don't think he gives a shit about your feelings:

I thought I should write you a letter, because I don’t seem to be able to convey to you how I feel verbally, in spite of repeated attempts to get my message across. I don’t know whether it’s that you are too busy to listen, or simply that you do not want to hear. I suspect that, at some level, you have some psychological difficulty in processing anything that is inconvenient for you to recognise, and that this is also why you tune out (even to the point of falling asleep) when you are confronted with anything that requires an emotional response from you.

I am unhappy about the fact that , between us as a couple, the work falls 100% on me. When we are with YOUR parents, YOUR relatives, YOUR friends, I am the only one arranging food and alcohol, cooking, making cakes, booking cottages, arranging restaurants etc. etc. etc. Repeatedly, the pattern between us is that you sign us up for events and house guests who involve a great deal of work, and I do that work. It is completely unequal.

It is especially unequal, and especially unfair in light of the fact that you claim to be are unable to do this work because you are pursuing a glittering career, while I have very little in the way of career success. The two things are even causally related - your decision not to do this labour means that it falls to my lot me, which prevents me from doing other things that would advance my lot in life. This is true not only of events but of a whole amount of domestic labour that is done every day in the house.

But there are psychological effects to drudgery, as well as temporal ones. Being “the help” is not just boring– it is a constant reminder of a state of affairs in which one exists only as a second-class citizen. Other people are too important to get down on hands and knees and scrub floors, clean toilets, or wash underwear - so it becomes one's lot in life. Retaining a sense of dignity and of purpose in the face of this is difficult in a way that I don’t think you can even imagine.

Part of the issue is that some of this structural and economic dynamic is internalised – the work becomes part of one’s essential being, a constant reminder of an unworthiness that is strongly gendered. In a context where I have spent the last six months living quite literally on a building site, that feeling of denigration has been actualised in the shape of a hostile, noisy and constantly difficult environment.

I feel fundamentally deprioritised, too. You have repeatedly found time, money and energy to celebrate your family's events - like your mother’s 70th birthday - but not my 40th. What is more, with finances being as they are, I've not only given up my birthday, but also the chance of a holiday, so you could celebrate with other people. I feel like I just don't matter.

Finally, drudge work that already has more than a hint of degradation about it is made exponentially more so when the people for whom you are doing it who benefit treat you me as incompetent and incapable. I am sick and tired of being bossed around by your parents, and treated like I cannot complete the most simple of tasks without unsolicited help and advice. You and your brother both sit by and do absolutely nothing to intervene with behaviour that is fundamentally unacceptable, even though you both fully recognise that the way they speak to and interact with me and BIL's partner is not OK in private.

Given the sacrifices that I have made, I deserve better than this.

In fact I'd even be tempted to go with:

Given the sacrifices that I have made, I deserve better than this.

because EVERYONE deserves better than this.

SendintheArdwolves · 16/04/2018 13:07

Brilliant edit, MrsHathaway - I completely agree

pigmcpigface · 16/04/2018 13:07

Wow, thank you so much for the feedback. I'm going to go with a summary paragraph to start then a longer letter (which he may/may not read; I think he will read it but whether he takes it in is a whole different story).

mrshathaway - thanks for going through it with a fine-toothed comb, it's really helpful.

bitoutofpractice - that telegram made me laugh!

OP posts:
Spaghettijumper · 16/04/2018 13:12

Thing is, unless he doesn't speak English or has some sort of comprehension disability, the problem isn't that he's hasn't quite 'got' what you've been trying to tell him so far - it's that he has heard you and either doesn't care or feels you have no right to complain.

Mummyoflittledragon · 16/04/2018 13:13

Mrshathaway
That’s a brilliant edit. It leaves all of the salient points in. And cuts out a lot of the emotion.

Assburgers · 16/04/2018 13:15

I agree with MrsHathaway’s edit.

I was trying to think of how I’d react if my DH was like this & it made me a bit sad. I’d presume he didn’t love me anymore.

Does your DH show you he loves you? That stinks that he didn’t do anything for your 40th. And the holiday situation.

You do deserve better.

MrsHathaway · 16/04/2018 13:17

(Thanks)

Your summary bit - I crossed posts with the idea of bullet points but I think it's fantastic - MUST include "I am not doing this any more". Your long letter complains about it but never once says it's over.

Though frankly, I think that telegram would do the job nicely. I have pinned it for future use!

Mytrustybucket1 · 16/04/2018 13:24

I wrote xh 2 letters in the hope his attitude towards me - regarding similar issues - would help. The effects were very short lived, then I LTB. Good luckThanks