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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

My abuser - thankfully now escaped

69 replies

Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 12:18

Sorry this is not an AIBU, but I’m posting here for traffic as I just want one person to read this. I don’t even need replies just someone to understand what I went through as I darent tell friends or family the full truth.
I have written this as I believed for years this man was not abusive and it was my fault, just the way he was. I now see him for what he is. AN ABUSER

Behaviour

People think he is lovely, charming, affectionate and loves me and his daughter. Plays dad of the year, but knows nothing of his child

Very polite and well spoken.

He is very entitled. Believes he can do no wrong.

Has the quickest temper

Can change from being lovely to so horrible In the blink of an eye

Gives me this terrifying stare. If I get that, I know I’m in for hell

Believes the world is out to get him. He can never just have abit of bad luck,
Or a bad day. It’s someone doing it to him.

He knows exactly how to wind me up and will do it then accuse me of overreacting if I get annoyed.

He is dramatic,exaggerates wildly and stretches the truth to suit himself.

He wakes up in a bad mood a lot and doesn’t speak to me as he’s scrolling on his phone.

Will happily sit on his phone all day and night ignoring me and his daughter.

He will often sit upstairs and be told he needs the time to him self and not disturb him. If I do disturb him I am needy and unfair

He never wants to do things as a family but spends all his time seeing or wanting to see his friends

He is angry. He shouts. He swears. He does this infront of our daughter scaring her

He is clever and uses this against me.

He is always blaming other people and doesn’t take responsibility unless he is in sad mood when drunk then can harp on about how he knows he doesn’t help himself by drinking/doing drugs/that he knows I’m not happy with him.

He often doesn’t answer me or daydreams. If I get frustrated about repeating myself to him he will snap at me.

He will bombard me with abusive messages. He will do it even if we are in the house together but in separate rooms rather than coming to speak to me in person.

He is never satisfied with anything, nothing is good enough.

He calls me names.

He is a master at the silent treatment and withdrawal of affection. He will go missing for days/weeks on end with no contact at all. The longest being 15 days, I didn’t even know if he was alive

Keeping me off his social media. Also hiding me from the world.

He tells me there is something wrong with me.

He can sometimes be happy or sometimes in a bad mood. It can change quickly.
He makes empty promises to me, his family and friends. He has wonderful ideas but rarely makes them happen.

He is always accusing me of
Only doing things for myself. Calling me selfish

Being a drama queen. He will actively seek out things going wrong and create an issue when there isn’t one

Being cold and lacking affection.

Being moody.

Never helping out in the house. He has actually said this is woman’s work!

Never cooks. If I ask for help he will buy a takeaway even if I don’t want to, always has to be what he wants to eat

Will not help with our child. Would rather pretend he can’t come home from work

Has a drinking problem but denies it

Has a drug problem. He has admitted to using cocaine around our 6 week out child. I have found empty drug bags In his car. Secretly takes drugs with friends.

Drink drives

Says the most horrific things about me and our child. Things that have stuck in my head and always will. Till the day I die.

He is a compulsive liar. He lies so much he doesn’t even know he lies or what he has lied about

Everything is a comparison and he has to be worst off… im I’ll, he’s iller. Im tired, he’s more tired. Im upset, he’s heartbroken. And it always has to be at my disadvantage

He will take my medication to work“by accident”

Emotion

He has threatened suicide many times before. I have even had to call 999 for this. I then got accused of being mental and ringing an ambulance for nothing and wasting their time

He has threatened to end the relationship countless times and said he can’t wait to be free of me and get on with his life.

It’s subtle but it is always about getting his own way.

If I confide in him, he will later use this information against me. I had to learn very quickly to not tell him anything I didn’t want used against me

If I don’t answer his calls or texts that he wants an answer from quick enough he gets very angry and sends me abusive texts. Will always call or text me with an important job when he knows I’m busy and then shouts at me for not doing it

He will push me to the point I break (cry) he is only happy once he has done this. It can sometimes take him days but when he finally does it he says it’s crocodile tears, im pathetic, I need to grow up.

He will make a sulky comment if I dont reply to his text even if I was asleep when he sent it. He will hound my phone till I answer

He will sleep in late and slob about then as soon as he wants to go out expects me to be ready to go and nags me if I’m taking too long getting ready.

Very unhygienic. Doesn’t see a problem with not showering. Doesn’t brush his teeth. Always smells of cigarette smoke. Ruins the sofa sitting on it filthy after work.

Will complain of his clothes aren’t washed quick enough and why don’t I bother ironing them.

Watches a lot of porn. This includes his ex girlfriend on only fans

Openly eyes up women when I’m with him. Flirts with women constantly and boasts to me about it.

Money

Very irresponsible with money

Will hold maternity pay against me

Tell me I use him for money despite earning a good wage myself

Tells me what I should and shouldn’t spend money on

Tells me nothing of his personal accounts

Will watch me go without while he has plenty of money

Flashes the cash

Will buy anyone in the pub a round but will complain if I ask for an us night. Says it’s a waste of money

Spends a lot of money on drugs and alcohol

He will pay for things then throw it back in my face.

Will not go to the cash machine himself, sends it to me and I have to get it out

I always have to chase for rent money

OP posts:
tsmainsqueeze · 17/10/2021 16:10

@Whototalkto1

You know what is so sad and shows what this person has done to me. Even now I feel guilty. I feel this overwhelming guilt that I have told my side of the story and I haven’t allowed him to tell his. I haven’t allowed him to tell you the times I spoke back, the times I stood in the doorway so he didn’t leave me and disappear once again. He would have told you that was why he picked me up and literally threw me across the room.

I hate him. I hate myself for allowing it and feeling this guilt

He doesn't deserve to tell his side of the story , what you described is chilling. Try to move on from hating him to feeling indifference , hate is destructive , you have a wonderful future free of this vile dangerous man, he doesn't deserve another moments thought . Good luck and much happiness in your new life .
WhatsUpDucky · 17/10/2021 16:18

I wish you and your daughter every happiness for the future
You have done the right thing

Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 16:34

@tsmainsqueeze

Thank you, you are of course right. It’s such a strange feeling knowing what I should think
And what I do think.

Again correct regarding the hate, I don’t want to hate. It is eating me up inside. It’s not in my nature to hate. He made me this way

OP posts:
FanGirlX · 17/10/2021 16:44

OP - someone on here recommended that I read up on trauma bonding. It's interesting and May apply to you too.

Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 17:38

@FanGirlX

OP - someone on here recommended that I read up on trauma bonding. It's interesting and May apply to you too.
Thank you, this is not something I have read up on but I have heard the term before.

I think I will have a good read up on this tonight

OP posts:
FanGirlX · 17/10/2021 17:48

Potentially al anon too. I haven't tried it yet but it's also been recommended.

FanGirlX · 17/10/2021 17:52

I'm also at the very early stages of trying to process all this, it's hard trying to rationalise it all in your head. Trying to rationalise, learn grow without blaming yourself.

3scape · 17/10/2021 17:57

Well done. He and my ex have so much in common. You'll move on and past him. You're strong. X

Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 18:04

@FanGirlX

I'm also at the very early stages of trying to process all this, it's hard trying to rationalise it all in your head. Trying to rationalise, learn grow without blaming yourself.
It’s so hard Isn’t it.. I don’t even know myself anymore
OP posts:
Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 18:05

@3scape

Well done. He and my ex have so much in common. You'll move on and past him. You're strong. X
I wish I was strong. I’m not. If it wasn’t for my baby I would have stayed

My baby needs protecting from him

OP posts:
Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 18:16

[quote FanGirlX]@Whototalkto1

Sounds a lot like my new ex DP.

We split 6 weeks ago and I'm still having bouts of blaming myself.

💐[/quote]
Please stay strong. You’ve come so far. Block on everything. I never did this till the police came and she explained the cycle of abuse and showed me now to break it. These men need control, when you leave them they realise they start to lose control that’s when The cycle goes back to the beginning. The promises, the love, the fake sorry

OP posts:
FluffyT · 17/10/2021 19:45

How did you do it? Did you just up and leave? Where did you go?

Whototalkto1 · 17/10/2021 20:06

@FluffyT

How did you do it? Did you just up and leave? Where did you go?
Well the funny thing is, if you can call it that? He actually left me. This isn’t unusual. He leaves, disappears for days on end, he blocks me, then unlocks me, I beg I cry I finally get him to come home after a million apologies from me.

This time…. He left.

I was too busy with my child to do any of the above. I had a 2 month old baby I was raising alone. 3 weeks later he calls and says he will be home that night and what is for tea? Obviously at this point I tell
Him it’s definitely over he needs
To collect his stuff. He can still see his child, but he needs
To make arrangements.

He sees his child once a week with me there but it was hell. The abuse escalated, he withheld money, snooped in my house, accused me of having a new man. All this continued till one day he flipped and a family member who I was on the phone too at the time called the police, and I’ve slowly made my way to where I am now

OP posts:
DuvetDayIsEveryDay · 17/10/2021 20:53

Well done OP. So glad you are out of this abusive relationship Flowers

Whototalkto1 · 18/10/2021 08:36

@DuvetDayIsEveryDay

Well done OP. So glad you are out of this abusive relationship Flowers
Thank you. I am so glad too. It’s scary, sometimes more scary than being in the relationship but I know it will all get better and easier
OP posts:
Whototalkto1 · 19/10/2021 21:00

Having a major wobble tonight… again, I’m just sounding off. It’s good to write this down and I’m hoping writing my concerns will allow me to sleep tonight.

I have had to export my what’s app chat, for evidence. And I read the messages. ☹️

It’s made me wobble because the majority of them are all nice and lovely. He was clever, he did little over message. He went silent on me, or he disappeared for days on end. A lot of the abuse was the way he made me feel, the eggshells, the sickness to the bottom of my stomach when he walked in in one of his moods.

I’m so scared now to report. It looks like he isn’t the monster I say he is. I read the messages from the days up to me having to e baby. And the days after. You can read the happiness in our messages. Only 6 weeks later he was taking cocaine in my bathroom whilst looking after the baby. That doesn’t show in messages.

Sorry for my ramblings. Just needed to write down my worries.

OP posts:
Alfiemoon1 · 19/10/2021 21:52

Please stay strong your journey has given me hope for my dd. They can be nice at times that’s what sucks you in gets you forgiving the bad behaviour and then blaming yourself. That’s what abusive people do.

Whototalkto1 · 19/10/2021 22:32

@Alfiemoon1

Please stay strong your journey has given me hope for my dd. They can be nice at times that’s what sucks you in gets you forgiving the bad behaviour and then blaming yourself. That’s what abusive people do.
Thank you @Alfiemoon1 I really hope Your DD can come out the other side like me. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

It’s just a wobble. I don’t want him back, ever. Just seeing the moment he was nice to me and we got on Has hurt tonight. My wobble is more me thinking I have taken this too far? Not the actual leaving, that I know I needed to do.

Am I keeping him from my child unnecessarily

OP posts:
NDmuch · 19/10/2021 23:57

You're keeping your child safe. He shouldn't be near you or your baby.
Stay strong. You can do this

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