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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

I am losing it with DH!

400 replies

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:19

Sorry, this will be long... I apologise in advance.

DH and I have been married for 11y. We have one DC (3yo). We both work FT and we have separate finances - I pay mortgage, childcare, house/garden maintenance and food/shopping. He pays for the car (I don't drive), utilities and a cleaner 1x week (5h). In case it is relevant, I make 4x his salary so I naturally cover 4x more in terms of costs.

I am a high earner and we can comfortably live without his income but I respect that he wants a career and have, 2 years ago, accepted to move away from my parents/friendship circle to live close to his parents as he had a career opportunity there. I have, in the past, offered him an option to be SAHP but he refused and I can fully understand that - SAHP wouldn't suit me either. DC adores him and he adores DC. The two of us can still laugh together, sex is good and I am not interested in other men.

However, and this is a big HOWEVER - I carry the entire mental load. All the appointments, all orders for the house, maintenance, pets, his own as well as DCs and mine health/social engagements - pretty much anything that comes to mind, it's down to me...

I WFH and have a very intense job which means that a week can pass and I won't step a foot outside of the house. He works in an office and gets up, showers, puts his suit/tie on and off he goes with a book to read during the commute. In the meanwhile, I wake up before him - feed the pets, start cooking (so that DC would have a healthy, cooked from scratch meal for dinner), check in on both sets of parents, get DC ready for nursery (he does drop offs and pick ups)... once they're out of the door, I clean, tidy and then start working. If work allows, I spend lunch break dealing with said appointments, orders...

And then we come to today. Last three weeks have been very difficult for me. I had a business trip which was cut short when a close family member of mine died. I flew to my home country to organise funeral, be support to my mother (ill and on her own) etc. Came back Sunday evening to a house that was a complete pit. It turns out he forgot the vet appointment for neutering our kitten, which started spraying... on top of that he decided to fire our cleaner as he 'realized he could save so much if he just did it himself' - but of course he didn't. His clothes and dirty socks were all over our en suite and dressing room.

I didn't even get a chance to recover/address this when I got plunged into a work-related crisis that got me working late 2 days in a row. He offered a 'poor you' speech but made sure to mention DC said how 'Mummy always works'. This morning he forgot to take something that had to be posted and I had to walk 25mins (one way) to do it myself. On top of that - even though I asked him 3x -he forgot to take my raincoat from the car and drove off with it and it was pouring outside. Finally - I discovered that he still didn't repair (or order parts) for a tool he was promising to fix since we moved here.

So, wise Mumsnetters - AIBU to lose it at him or not? What do I do? How do I make him see this kind of life will send me to a hospital or worse?

OP posts:
CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 12:26

AIBU to lose it at him or not?

I think you should lose HIM and get a nanny. He's a lazy twat.

CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 12:27

The longer you stay with him the more you will have to give him in the event of divorce.

Restinggoddess · 24/08/2023 12:31

You need to ask the right question - you ask I’m

‘What is it you want from this relationship?’

this is always very telling in terms of the response

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:35

CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 12:27

The longer you stay with him the more you will have to give him in the event of divorce.

I considered that but in all honesty - the only value I see in money is providing roof over our heads and enabling my child to get education and skills to be an independent adult. Long way of saying - I don't care about what he'd take in a divorce as I can provide for my DC and myself even if he gets 50% of everything.

I decided against because of DC (selfishly, I admit I don't want to share custody as I can't imagine not being in DCs life every day until they are fully grown) and because we still have good times when I can keep things under control... but on occasion, I need to feel like I can drop one of the plates I'm juggling without fearing that it would immediately become complete disaster. I need to feel I'm not the only safety net for our life together, if that makes sense.

OP posts:
Ladybug14 · 24/08/2023 12:35

You won't make him see things from your pov

He won't change

If you insist that you have to stay with him, then employ a housekeeper/ life assistant and cleaner

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:35

Restinggoddess · 24/08/2023 12:31

You need to ask the right question - you ask I’m

‘What is it you want from this relationship?’

this is always very telling in terms of the response

I want a partner. I wan't to share responsibility.

OP posts:
LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:37

Ladybug14 · 24/08/2023 12:35

You won't make him see things from your pov

He won't change

If you insist that you have to stay with him, then employ a housekeeper/ life assistant and cleaner

I am afraid it will really come down to that.

OP posts:
AnneLovesGilbert · 24/08/2023 12:39

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:35

I want a partner. I wan't to share responsibility.

That’s what you know you’re not going to get. Parents make life easier for each other. He’s not holding up his side of that and he won’t, because he doesn’t want to. While he thinks he’s above pitching in as your equal you won’t change him.

purplepandas · 24/08/2023 12:39

I don't have any answers but have just exploded at mine. He has zero mental load and I cannot hold it all any more. No amount of me telling him I can't do it without help changes anything, I would be better off taking to a wall.

Solidarity indeed.

rookiemere · 24/08/2023 12:40

I can't believe he fired the cleaner. What was his reasoning behind that
?

Merryoldgoat · 24/08/2023 12:43

Have you got any shared calendars etc that you can assign tasks to each other and schedule things?

You both work, and although he obviously earns less that’s not necessarily an indication of someone not working hard.

The housework needs a proper frank conversation and you need a ‘plan’ and then to see if he sticks to it.

Have you had conversations about this before? What does he say?

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:43

AnneLovesGilbert · 24/08/2023 12:39

That’s what you know you’re not going to get. Parents make life easier for each other. He’s not holding up his side of that and he won’t, because he doesn’t want to. While he thinks he’s above pitching in as your equal you won’t change him.

He is a solid parent to DC in that he has patience to play, he's very engaged in teaching them stuff, he is 100% responsible when it comes to agreed parenting decisions (as in - how do we teach DC right from wrong, etc.), and he will take them anywhere anytime... he just won't think to organise anything or book activities/playdates/buy birthday presents etc. Essentially - I'd have to put it in his calendar plus remind him at least twice.

It's the stuff DC can't see/feel that happens in the background that he doesn't cover.

OP posts:
LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:44

purplepandas · 24/08/2023 12:39

I don't have any answers but have just exploded at mine. He has zero mental load and I cannot hold it all any more. No amount of me telling him I can't do it without help changes anything, I would be better off taking to a wall.

Solidarity indeed.

Sending you a big, commiseration hug

OP posts:
LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:45

rookiemere · 24/08/2023 12:40

I can't believe he fired the cleaner. What was his reasoning behind that
?

Apparently, cleaner got ill and cancelled, he vacuumed and dusted that day himself and concluded he can do it 'all on his own, saving all this money'. I cleaned the bathroom Sunday evening upon my return - they haven't been cleaned 2+w.

OP posts:
JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn · 24/08/2023 12:46

I assume he sacked the cleaner because he didn't want to spend the money...

QueenoftheNimbleFlyingCat · 24/08/2023 12:47

YANBU. It's so misogynistic and indicative of society where women have to work and be the breadwinner whilst simultaneously doing all the 'wife work' from the 1950s it's just rubbish.

I got rid of mine and it's made my life infinitely easier.

CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 12:47

JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn · 24/08/2023 12:46

I assume he sacked the cleaner because he didn't want to spend the money...

And the twat actually said HE would be saving the money, when OP is clearly the breadwinner.

theGooHasGone · 24/08/2023 12:51

I think you need to make it clear that the cleaner is non-negotiable. If he doesn't want to pay then it doesn't sound like you'd really notice the extra expense yourself, totally unfair though it is.

Ultimately though others are right - it has to be a conscious decision on his part to actually try and handle some of the load, whether he wants to or you force him to.

I suffer from a similar situation where I work from home and DP does not. I am seen as having the "easier" job because of this, despite the fact that it's stressful and pays a lot more.

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 12:51

Merryoldgoat · 24/08/2023 12:43

Have you got any shared calendars etc that you can assign tasks to each other and schedule things?

You both work, and although he obviously earns less that’s not necessarily an indication of someone not working hard.

The housework needs a proper frank conversation and you need a ‘plan’ and then to see if he sticks to it.

Have you had conversations about this before? What does he say?

We do but he 'is bad with those things' and it 'overwhelms him to have multiple calendars as he already has one at work'.

No, salary is not an indicator of how hard the work is at all, I completely agree. However, neither one of us is a surgeon/nurse and nobody's life depends on whether we do our jobs - it is a matter of supporting our lifestyle. If one of us loses our job: without his, our lifestyle doesn't change... without mine - we lose the house, DCs education path...

We had conversations about this in the past. He'd make an effort for a few days (1w was the longest) and then slip back into his 'easy living, everything can wait' mode but in the past that has usually been enough for me to get a firmer grip and keep rolling.

OP posts:
CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 12:53

It's so painful watching intelligent, successful women fal into this trap.

Do you really think this lazy twat will want the kids 50/50? Because they rarely do.

gamerchick · 24/08/2023 12:53

He won't change but read him the riot act anyway. And stop taking his mental load. Ignore it completely. Stop doing anything for him at all.

If you meet everyone's needs all of the time then they'll never see how little they do. you'll burn out and resentment will set in and doom your marriage anyway

ChaToilLeam · 24/08/2023 12:55

He’s a lazy arsehole, that’s what he is.

Time to read the riot act but I doubt he will change. Men like this rarely do.

horseyhorsey17 · 24/08/2023 12:56

He sacked the cleaner to save himself money, knowing you'd end up doing the cleaning? This kind of thing honestly makes my blood boil. He sounds like a useless manchild tbh.

LosingIt23 · 24/08/2023 13:01

The problem with the cleaning is - I spend 100% of my time in this house as I WFH and I can't exist in a smelly, dirty pit. I can't focus and I can't do my job if i am surrounded with dirt and chaos and if I think that DC may have to sleep/wash in it. He doesn't notice any of it and keeps telling me 'its not that bad and we'll do it together over the weekend' but that weekend never comes.

I used to pay for the cleaner and don't mind paying for it, he took it over in March as he finished paying for something else and wanted to 'pull his fair share'. I was shocked to discover he fired her and when I asked if we could re-hire her (or someone else), he gave me 'trust me, we don't need one, I can do it all on my own' speech and I didn't want to undermine him. But I can't keep living like this. The house is now in such a state that I'd be embarrassed to have a cleaner over until I gave it a proper clean once.

OP posts:
CherryMaDeara · 24/08/2023 13:01

gamerchick · 24/08/2023 12:53

He won't change but read him the riot act anyway. And stop taking his mental load. Ignore it completely. Stop doing anything for him at all.

If you meet everyone's needs all of the time then they'll never see how little they do. you'll burn out and resentment will set in and doom your marriage anyway

Yes, at least stop doing things for him, OP.

You won’t change anything by doing what you’ve always done.

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