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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Aibu - really worried I’ve started a war

113 replies

joao2570 · 09/04/2025 21:06

so I met this woman I liked (we were both married). She was my therapist at the time and we ended up having a bit of a weird dynamic, nothing sexual happened but lines were definitely crossed, tbink whatsapping me hotels, trying to choose my nanny, wearing revealing clothing, asking me every week if I’d made my decision about leaving my husband, talking about trips we would take together etc. maybe we got a bit bffs maybe we were having an emotional affair. Idk.

My husband and I were in a very toxic relationship. He held me down and suffocated me. When I disclosed it to her, she encouraged me not to report and instead tried to help me to leave him on my terms - or so I thought.
It all came to a head. She had been encouraging me to take a trip away from my husband and children for my well-being. When I got back, my husband and I had another terrible fight and he really hurt me. I messaged her and got really angry with her. I told her I didn’t want her to be my therapist and blamed her for not reporting the initial violence. I said she had put me and my children at risk and threatened to report her. She apologised, said she had only been trying to help and then ghosted me.
A week or so later, I apologised and asked to see her again to sort it out (I felt like I’d blamed her for something that wasn’t really her fault). She ghosted me. I left my husbands, I tried to move on with my life and respected her wishes.

Five months later, she started popping up again in WhatsApp group chats (we are part of a small community, both our children were similar ages). One of them was a group for single mums. I just ignored her at first, thought she was just reintegrating in the community and tried to peacefully coexist.

Then she got weird. In a chat thread I’d already commented on, she posted about domestic violence, even though it hadn’t been explicitly mentioned. She encouraged someone to report domestic violence, the exact opposite of what she told me to do at the time. Unfortunately for her, it wasn’t in the vibe of the conversation and the other mothers shot her down. She ended up leaving this group in the end.

However she stayed in some other groups and then when my best friend asked for a recommendation, she told her to message her. This is when I snapped. I genuinely felt baited by this point - bff and I are publicly besties and everyone knows. There’s no way ex therapist couldn’t have.

I asked for a recommendation about something, framing it as a joke. I didn’t mention any names but it specifically pointed at something incriminating I knew she had done. Nobody else did and thought it was hilarious - I got a lot of laughing emoji reactions. I expected her to block me and leave the groups. She read the messages but didn’t do anything else.

My friend said that ex-therapist probably really liked me and wanted to check in on me. So I apologised and sent a very nice message to her, nothing incriminating, just offering peace and to clear the air if she wanted. She didn’t reply but on the same days is reading my group chat messages, as if to make a point of saying ‘I’m ignoring you.’ She hasn’t left groups, hasnt blocked me, hasnt sent a brief message saying ‘all good vibes let’s move on separately’ (which, considering the likelihood of bumping in to each other, imo would be the most professional thing to do).

Did I overreact in this situation? Have I been the asshole? Or was I justified? Do you think she will just ghost me again now or have I started a war? And am I being a complete drama llama about this whole thing in the first place?

OP posts:
joao2570 · 10/04/2025 19:06

Thank you for all your thoughts on this.

i made the report this morning, focused on the the objective facts and took my own perspective out of it. I noted safeguarding failures, boundary issues and inappropriate crisis support. Have WhatsApp conversations to prove this and used ChatGPT to analyse the messages and pick out specific examples.
Idk what the hell went on but am feeling much more at peace now. After years of my narcissistic husband, any sort of threat makes me anxious and I do hyper fixate on them. This is something I am working on with my DV counsellor.

Thank you again for your thoughts - even the negative, slightly homophobic ones 😉 it definitely helped me piece together and objective, factual complaint that will hopefully prevent this from happening again 😊

OP posts:
TherapyName · 10/04/2025 19:35

People get very confused by the term 'psychologist' and assume that someone BPS registered is a counselling psychologist (which is a protected term) whereas a 'psychologist' is NOT a protected term. They also assume that someone is registered / accredited with an organisation like BPS has completed personal therapy which is not always the case. Anyone reading this thread can call themselves a 'psychologist'.

If you look for someone BACP Accredited and check that they have completed accredited training they will have done a minimum of 30 hours of personal therapy (much too low in my honest opinion for the work we're doing but that's the current rules, many of us did a great deal more and we are required to have clinical supervision throughout our careers).

Your 'psychologist' is wildly unprofessional and boundaries were blurred. Boundaries are crucial in therapy because they are a safe container for clients who are vulnerable in therapy. However your work with this person is at an end and your posts aren't covering you with glory. You are completely within your rights to report her to her professional body. However your continuing behaviour is really troubling because you are craving her attention without any real self-awareness. I would really encourage you to continue engaging with your ongoing therapy - hopefully with an appropriately qualified and boundaried professional!

TherapyName · 10/04/2025 19:37

Apologies, I started my post and didn't post it (phone call) for half an hour so I missed your post that you reported her today.

Pomvit · 11/04/2025 19:59

Just move on

TopNarcTip · 11/04/2025 20:15

joao2570 · 10/04/2025 19:06

Thank you for all your thoughts on this.

i made the report this morning, focused on the the objective facts and took my own perspective out of it. I noted safeguarding failures, boundary issues and inappropriate crisis support. Have WhatsApp conversations to prove this and used ChatGPT to analyse the messages and pick out specific examples.
Idk what the hell went on but am feeling much more at peace now. After years of my narcissistic husband, any sort of threat makes me anxious and I do hyper fixate on them. This is something I am working on with my DV counsellor.

Thank you again for your thoughts - even the negative, slightly homophobic ones 😉 it definitely helped me piece together and objective, factual complaint that will hopefully prevent this from happening again 😊

Awesome work OP. Well done.

Thefsm · 11/04/2025 20:41

I’m very close to my therapists - but there are boundaries to protect you both and she made your mental health worse not better. I’m horrified for you

Laura95167 · 11/04/2025 22:15

I'm unclear what actually happened with her and if it was a romantic/intimate connection or just some transference from you.

I do think she shouldn't be advising you to not report DV, or advising you how to leave your husband. That was inappropriate and unprofessional and deserves reporting.

But this current you're in group messages but she's ghosting you is... well nuts. You're grown women. And you're potentially reading a lot into nothing, the fact you're checking shes read your group chat messages is OTT. I think you need to ignore her and just coexist. Leave her alone and move on

Laura95167 · 11/04/2025 22:24

joao2570 · 09/04/2025 23:31

Ok so I agree, and I was doubting myself. So I sent her an email about how much I adored my cleaner (a very hot 20 something who is like my surrogate daughter) to see how she would react and she tried to get me to sack her. She’d found Nannie’s and cleaners and was sending them to me via WhatsApp. I’m not even sure I was attracted to her. I certainly adored her as a person and valued her support.

completely agree though that the other things are all explainable. That’s why I said specifically I wasn’t sure whether we’d gotten to bffs or had an emotional affair. I just knew the dynamic was weird

"Very hot 20 something who is like my surrogate daughter"

GRIM GRIM GRIM

If she's like a daughter I wouldn't be describing her as very hot.

I think its also shitty to bait your therapist by telling her this surrogate daughter cleaner you have is hot to get a reaction out of her. Cleaner doesn't deserve to be talked about like that because you hope to wind up your therapist to see if she fancies you.

Laura95167 · 11/04/2025 22:30

joao2570 · 09/04/2025 23:51

Yes can see how that might have come across actually 🙄🤦‍♀️
to clarify - my cleaner is like my daughter in that I fuss over her if she leaves late and want her to get home safe. I am only 28 myself. We are very close but nothing weird has ever happened with us. I just think she’s a very beautiful person both inside and out. Should have chosen the word beautiful.

I think you need to look at how healthy your relationships are.

Is this a newly discovered interest in women and therefore a bit overcurious? Are you transferring because of the awful marriage?

I'm concerned that 2 women you've professional relationships with you're getting romantic/sexual/intimate feelings for. Being very aware of how attractive you find them and getting emotionally intense and while I absolutely think the therapist was unprofessional I'm not sure your feelings were reciprocated.

valentinka31 · 12/04/2025 00:33

Justmovehousethen · 10/04/2025 09:59

WTF.

Why were you emailing your therapist about your surrogate daughter who is your cleaner who you found hot?

This has got to be a wind up.

This, and all the other comments noting the same thing.

Lorlorlorikeet · 12/04/2025 11:30

joao2570 · 09/04/2025 23:51

Yes can see how that might have come across actually 🙄🤦‍♀️
to clarify - my cleaner is like my daughter in that I fuss over her if she leaves late and want her to get home safe. I am only 28 myself. We are very close but nothing weird has ever happened with us. I just think she’s a very beautiful person both inside and out. Should have chosen the word beautiful.

There’s not a thing about this thread that isn't ringing alarm bells. 🤢

MusicMakesItAllBetter · 12/04/2025 17:40

joao2570 · 10/04/2025 00:52

Because even if I do that she can still see my WhatsApp group messages and I can still see hers. I’m super worried about what she might be saying to people.

If she's blocked by you then you won't see her messages and she not yours.

If she is going around speaking of you to anyone then she definitely needs reporting.

By the sound of it she's not acted professionally at all and family or no family she put you at immense risk by telling you not to report your husband.

You must report her and block her from your contacts. Then she won't see nor you anything of one another

MusicMakesItAllBetter · 12/04/2025 17:44

TopNarcTip · 11/04/2025 20:15

Awesome work OP. Well done.

Well done!
Without sounding patronising, you're young and you sound vibrant but vulnerable. Keep working on yourself and never let anyone cross boundaries again x

(I'm 47 and would still call someone younger then me hot although I do cringe a bit if the hottie is in their twenties 😆🤭😁 but then I get over it. I'm alive, my blood is pumping and I'm not sorry for being who I am).

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