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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think my DP has a drink problem? He doesn't think so

98 replies

Pirandello24 · 28/11/2019 12:12

I genuinely can't see the wood for the trees with this one. My DP is perfectly able to have a drink or two with dinner, family events etc. However when he goes out with friends it's like he completely loses control. Last night he went out for "a few drinks" with a group of friends he hasn't seen for a while. It's mid week, we have two young non-sleeping DCs who we take it in turns to do nights/ mornings with- we agreed I'd do the night wakings if he got up with them at 6.30 to give me a bit of a lie in. I expected (or hoped really) that he'd come home after the pub has shut, quite tipsy, and pass out in bed til the morning.

Except at 1am I was woken up by a retching noise in my ear. DP was throwing up in bed, so drunk that he couldn't even turn his head to the side. He was choking on his sick whilst continuing to throw up. It was like something out of a medical drama tbh. I jumped out of bed, tried to push him on his side into the recovery position, petrified he was going to choke to death. He was so drunk I couldn't move him though, so had to sit there while he finishing puking and choking and crying "help me". Once he'd finished he passed out in his sick and I went to sleep in the spare room. Or more accurately, lie there crying and wondering what the fuck to do.

This isn't a one off. I've started to dread his nights out now as I know he'll say he's going out for a drink and end up rolling home God knows when. He's ruined weekend plans, been mugged on the train because he passed out. He's often in a foul mood the next day, and it really impacts badly on his anxiety. The hardest thing is that if I try to talk to him about it and say that this is not ok, he looks at me like I'm crazy, says he's doesn't have a problem. He'll never apologise unless I ask him too, and even then it's so grudging and almost contemptuous. I don't know what to do. Is it me? Should I be more understanding? I just don't want the kids to grow up with this.

OP posts:
Tish008 · 28/11/2019 12:14

Stop trying to change his behaviour, he won't.

Take the decision into your own hands and leave. Protect yourself and children.

user1494670108 · 28/11/2019 12:15

Yanbu. Very. This is so far beyond what is reasonable that you shouldn't really have to ask.
Unfortunately, apart from the usual mn answer of Ltb,I'm not sure I have the answer but it doesn't sound as though he's receptive to any suggestions you'd make anyway so I guess your decision has to be whether or not to live like this.

eenymeenyminyme · 28/11/2019 12:15

If alcohol is affecting family life I'd say it's a problem.

Maybe contact a support group yourself and ask them for evidence that what he's doing is not OK, so you can show him it's not just your opinion?

Hopefully someone with more experience and ideas of helpful groups will come along soon and he'll see sense...

Outnumbered99 · 28/11/2019 12:17

He has a problem OP. It wouldn't be one that I could put up with unless he was doing all he could do to overcome it. Alcohol is affecting family life and literally putting his own life at risk.

There are many many more functioning alcoholics than we think. (Are his friends all similar?) Time for a serious talk I think, I'm sorry x

ELM8 · 28/11/2019 12:17

How often does he go out with his friends and get in that sort of state? I'm not sure it's a drink problem if he can handle himself most of the time, it's probably more insecurity/peer pressure/lack of self control when he's with his friends...

Horehound · 28/11/2019 12:18

Nope, he's a complete idiot.
He does have a problem and because of that, you have a problem..him!

jewel1968 · 28/11/2019 12:22

I know a few alcoholics and many are in my family (must be a gene thing) and most of them did not face up to their addiction. One did and is now sober. A few things questions and observations,:

  • it is only when out with mates but can control his drinking. Those I know would not ever be able to control drinking once they started. They could avoid it and have a dry day.
  • how old is he?
  • how long has it been going on
  • could he be using alcohol to self medicate for his anxiety?
  • has anybody else noticed
  • do you drink?
JasonPollack · 28/11/2019 12:26

There's no way anyone throwing up in the marital bed, choking on their own vomit, does not have a problem! That is fucking disgusting.

If he won't accept he has a problem then you need to separate. I'm sorry Flowers

messolini9 · 28/11/2019 12:28

He doesn't think so
They never do.

Living with an alkie is hell OP.
Living with a barely functional one, who gaslights you (looks at me like I'm crazy, says he's doesn't have a problem), refuses to apologise for his disgusting state, & is grudging & contemptuous is an abusive hell.

Your children really need to not be under the same roof as him.
Neither to you - he has created an untenable living situation.
Obviously he "isn't an alcoholic" until HE ADMITS IT & he is nowhere near admitting anything - he finds it hard to even manage to be civil to you.

I suspect you are at the end of your tether.
If you are, the only way to go now is ultimatum time - he either owns his problem, joins AA, & quits drinking, or you will be taking steps to remove his abusive arse from your children's sight.

I am so sorry for what you are enduring Pirandello.
It's ducks in a row time, isn't it? - but I can promise you, the evening you no longer have to be on tenterhooks waiting for his key in the door & his shambling, incoherent entrance to your kids' home, the morning you don't have to tread on eggshells around his hangover & bad temper, the days when you don't have to wonder & worry where money is coming from for essentials because it's been pissed away on booze ... are just wonderful.
Flowers

Herocomplex · 28/11/2019 12:30

What a completely miserable experience. I can’t see what you can do other than tell him how it’s affecting you, ask him if he wants to make some changes, then tell him what you’re going to do. You can’t compel him if he’s not acknowledging it, and it sounds like he’s in denial.
Make your own plan for yourself and your DC’s, but don’t live like this. It’s soul destroying.

I would definitely seek out Al-Anon, support for relatives of alcoholics.

Caledoniahasmyheartforever · 28/11/2019 12:33

He sounds just like my brother- also an alcoholic (although not responsible enough to have settled down and have children) and also arrogant when confronted for his drinking! My brother was brought home by the police multiple times because he was in such a state they were worried he would come to harm. My brother has been ‘rolled’ (followed and mugged) multiple times.

Unfortunately unless your dh recognises he has a problem himself then there is nothing you can do. My brother went to AA and stopped drinking for a year when given an ultimatum by my parents. But he never truly believed he had a problem so he started drinking again.

He was hospitalised earlier this year after a two week bender, on drips for days and sure he was going to die. He himself admitted he had a problem and has stopped drinking- for now. He isn’t going to AA meetings though and that tells me he will drink again.

In your shoes I would throw him out, give him the shock he needs! My parents enabled my brother by not following through and kicking him out when he did it again. The cycle continued because they enabled him. The only way to stop the cycle is not to enable him by standing by him whilst he drinks.

It’s so hard I know, but it’s the healthiest thing you can do for you and your babies

recrudescence · 28/11/2019 12:33

Should I be more understanding?

Yes, provided he has acknowledged he is an alcoholic, is receiving treatment for alcoholism, has joined AA and is going regularly to meetings. He must also have been sober for six months.

Even then I wouldn’t be holding my breath.

Bananalanacake · 28/11/2019 12:34

I hope you left him to clean it up himself so he realises how bad it is. he needs to hit rock bottom and help himself. I'd have thought being mugged would shock him into stopping.

Pirandello24 · 28/11/2019 12:36

Thank you so much for your replies so far. In answer to some of your questions: it's not happening every week but it is every time he goes out and alcohol is involved. Maybe once every few weeks? And yes, he does have anxiety and low self esteem which is probably fuelling it. I think if he admitted that and wanted to get help I could see a resolution to this, but it's the way he acts like I'm being completely unreasonable that just really upsets me.

Other answers to qns: he's mid 30s. Other people don't think he has a problem (to my knowledge) as they just see him having fun on a night out- it's me that has to pick up the pieces after. I don't drink much as I've either been pregnant or breastfeeding over the last few years!

OP posts:
Annasgirl · 28/11/2019 12:42

Hi OP, yes of course he has an alcohol problem - he got sick in his own bed and slept in it and he is the father of 2 young DC.

The question is now, what are you going to do.

He does not accept he has an alcohol problem so he will not change his actions. You however, do not have to live with that, that is what the women who came before you fought so long and hard for, you no longer have to stay with an abusive man in 2019.

The hard part will be deciding to leave. As the adult child of an alcoholic I can tell you that your children will thank you if you remove them from this environment, the anxiety never leaves you if you grow up on tenterhooks over an alcoholic's mood swings.

Also, just because your DH does not drink every day this is no indication that he does not have a problem so do not listen to him or to others who try to explain this away as insecurity or peer pressure or any other rubbish excuse - he was sick and is moody due to alcohol, end of discussion.

DO you have family in real life who can support you OP? It will be a tough road ahead but you need to decide what you want as your life. He will not change the way he is because in his mind there is no problem.

Pirandello24 · 28/11/2019 12:44

I think the other hard thing is that I don't trust him with the kids when he's like this. I had two hours sleep last night due to him and the kids being up and really wanted to be able to rely on him to take over parenting in the morning. But I had to wake him up at 5.45 so he could clean himself up, strip the bed etc so our DC wouldn't see him like this when they woke up. He told me to go to bed as he was hungover but feeling ok. I did as I was completely exhausted but I woke up at 8 as our baby was crying in his cot and DP had gone to sleep in our toddlers bed while our toddler was next to him watching TV on his phone

OP posts:
Pirandello24 · 28/11/2019 12:45

Thank you so much for all your responses. I'm reading them all carefully and I appreciate people caring enough to reply

OP posts:
Littlemissdaredevil · 28/11/2019 12:46

My DH did this once after we had DC and he goes out rarely. I told him to stay at a friends house if he wanted to get drunk as he was not to turn up drunk, be sick and wake everyone up. Funnily, enough he never come home that drunk again, been sick and now tip toes into the house and goes straight to bed.

Do he have life assurance and a will (and are you the beneficiary?) I would bring this up that if you aren’t their and he chokes on his own vomit he needs to make sure that you and DC are provided for.

PizzaExpressWoking · 28/11/2019 12:50

Fucking hell, this is terrible.

Beveren · 28/11/2019 12:58

Have you been able to talk to him since last night? Surely even he would recognise that getting so drunk that he nearly choked on his own vomit is something to worry about.

Pinkypurple35 · 28/11/2019 12:59

God that is awful, choking on vomit is a serious level of drunk. Yes I think he must have a problem but he needs to recognise this himself. Tbh if he doesn’t think he has an issue after choking on vomit in his sleep I don’t know what will make him realise.

Pedestriancrossing · 28/11/2019 13:00

Well, clearly YANBU.

I had this with my ex-H (note the ex!). Went through many many arguments over drink, him losing his licence for drink-driving (it was a "mistake" apparently), coming back from the pub totally trashed after "just a few" and pee-ing on the bedroom carpet, hiding drinks around the house, calling me "no fun" and "if I was nicer to him he wouldn't need to drink"..... he would never admit to having a problem and never sought help, and I couldn't make him.

I left him in the end. Wish I'd done it sooner.
I heard a few years ago that he died from alcoholic liver failure.

My advice - get yourself out of this. You can't fix it but it will destroy you too if you stay. Sorry.

Giraffey1 · 28/11/2019 13:00

Other people do not think he has an issue as they don’t see the results of his drinking. I’d be inclined to tell him next time he goes out that you will be locking the doors and he will have to find somewhere else to stay the night. Tell him you refuse to put up with his selfish behaviour any more. Maybe if he throws up in someone else’s home he / they will begin to realise there’s a problem here.
It might also be worth contactIng one of the support groups for people who are alcoholics or have ‘volume control’ issues to see what advice they can offer.

Areyoufree · 28/11/2019 13:00

And yes, he does have anxiety and low self esteem which is probably fuelling it.

More likely the other way around. It was amazing how much better my mental health got once I stopped drinking.

CatUnderTheStairs · 28/11/2019 13:01

www.al-anonuk.org.uk/