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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

DH wants to abort, I don’t

286 replies

ccd90 · Today 14:39

8 weeks pregnant due to contraception failing.

We have 2 DC’s, one is 3, one is 1.

Abortion was booked for Thursday then this morning I had a big bleed, hospital scanned me and saw a baby with a strong heartbeat and no reason for the big bleed.

I have come home and told DH I cannot go through with abortion. He’s not happy. He said I’m only thinking of myself, he doesn’t want the baby, he’s saying he going to close our business down as he can’t deal with the stress and he’s going to go get a “normal” job.

It’s impossible to talk to him right now.

I haven’t been 100% sure about the abortion right from the very beginning and then today I walked out of the hospital knowing I had to keep this baby otherwise I was going to break my own heart.

I am in such a shit situation. I don’t know what to do for the best. If I have the abortion, I’ll resent him and we’ll end up splitting anyway. If I carry on with the pregnancy and he’s unsupportive then I think I will end up with pre and post natal depression (I’ve had PND since baby was born a year ago which I am currently getting help for).

I wish he could just hug me and say we’ve got this, we will make it work. I’m just so upset I don’t know what to do.

OP posts:
daisyydaisyy · Today 17:11

Have your baby. You will be absolutely fine and better off without this stress. Either way you will eventually split but this is YOUR decision not his. Ever.

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:11

I don't necessarily agree with the comments that he has absolutely no say because it's your body, this impacts him too.

WhatHappenedToYourFurnitureCuz · Today 17:12

daisyydaisyy · Today 17:11

Have your baby. You will be absolutely fine and better off without this stress. Either way you will eventually split but this is YOUR decision not his. Ever.

Why are you so sure she'll be absolutely fine and less stressed as a single mother of three with no income and PND?

TaptheCap · Today 17:13

You'll never forgive him if you go through with an abortion you don't want. Your relationship will be doomed and you'll resent him and probably leave him anyway. And still not have the baby you want

He may forgive you for having this baby, he may not but either way, you'll have the baby.

Only have an abortion if it is what YOU want,. for whatever reason.

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:14

daisyydaisyy · Today 17:11

Have your baby. You will be absolutely fine and better off without this stress. Either way you will eventually split but this is YOUR decision not his. Ever.

Sorry I disagree slightly, he has a right to an opinion about this too and this impacts his life, I don't think men should be excluded to the point of he has no say in the decision EVER. He does have the right to being involved in the decision, the ultimate decision is of course the Mother's but there is too much dismissal of the Father here

theDudesmummy · Today 17:15

Of course it is absolutely your decision, but that does not mean that the decision you make will turn out to have been the best one.

Matchalattecoco · Today 17:16

I’m going through something somewhat very similar to you, it really is a battle between my heart and brain. Sharing support for you 💐

nomoreforks · Today 17:18

If it were me, there is absolutely no way that I would have an abortion that I did not want to have. I would be so resentful of my husband that our relationship would not survive. It is completely up to your husband if he wants to support you and maybe he will decide to close his business. This is up to him. You have the responsbility to do what YOU want to do even if it there are consequences.

SirenScream · Today 17:18

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:11

I don't necessarily agree with the comments that he has absolutely no say because it's your body, this impacts him too.

He's adamant he doesnt want another baby, but doesnt bother to get the snip.
He's to blame.

Flamingbanana214 · Today 17:19

3 under 5, potentially newly single with no income and PND sounds like an incredibly stressful path to take. I appreciate that both choices are difficult though.

lastapache · Today 17:22

I think you really need to sit down and think about what is best for your existing family right now.

I agree with the previous poster. Is having a third child the best choice for your two existing children? I know there will always be posters who'll say "every child is a blessing, your existing children will love their new sibling" but that's simply not true, not in reality. And if having a third child leads to the breakdown of your marriage, or even leads to a rocky few years, I couldn't put them through that either. Yes, I'd feel grief, and guilt, and resent my husband for putting me through that. But it's not about me. It's never about me, it's about my kids.

If having a termination leads to such resentment, such guilt and grief that it breaks down your marriage then so be it. In my view you will have done everything to spare your current children the pain of a divorce, but the divorce was unavoidable.

Other posters might disagree but I think there's a much higher chance of your marriage breaking down if you go through with the pregnancy. And it will be much tougher on you to be a single mum to three kids under four rather than two, even if you are doing it free of the guilt and grief of an unwanted termination. Believe me, the breakdown of a relationship leads to a lot of guilt and grief anyway.

I think if you decide that continuing with the pregnancy is the only route you can take, you should take it with your eyes wide open. I don't know what age you are, but would you be able to cope if your third child had additional needs? I think you need to understand that your husband will place the blame for the breakdown of your family firmly at your front door, and there's a good chance he will act accordingly. Will he be totally frank about his finances, especially since he is self employed? Can he take the kids 50/50 if he is self employed? Can you afford separate living spaces? Would you have to move in with your parents? How would you explain it to your kids when they are older?

I come to this with some experience. I have three kids, the third being a "surprise" after contraception failing. I wanted a termination initially, my husband didn't. I decided to go ahead with the pregnancy because we were financially and emotionally stable. Now don't get me wrong, I love my third child wholeheartedly. However, he is autistic and the first few years were incredibly tough. On balance, it was the wrong decision for my older two children. There's no getting away from it. You don't have any free time after you have two children, so in order to make time for the third you steal from the time you were giving to your first two. That's generally fine, on balance they have a third sibling to play with and rely on when they're older, so that makes up for it. But the amount of time, and finances, I have had to give to my third has led to such resentments from my older two and it's only now, ten years later, that things are evening out. And they don't get a third sibling to play with or rely on when they're older. They will have to take care of him when we are gone. I can't imagine rolling in a marriage breakdown in to that, with the emotional, financial and time tolls that that takes.

I know this is probably all you are thinking about, but don't let your heart rule your head right now, because trying to save yourself a broken heart right now might actually lead to a worse broken heart in the future.

Maybe going to a counsellor might help - even an online one?

Whoops75 · Today 17:22

You really need to fact check the reality of having another child. Will your family help as much as you think? Will you get the time you need to recover your mental capacity.
If you end up in hospital on this pregnancy (possible with a previous bleed) who will mind the children?

You owe it to the 2 children you have to ask yourself the hard questions. Wanting a baby isn’t enough when you have others to provide for.

Firstworldprobs · Today 17:23

ccd90 · Today 17:07

No that is not me, I am not having sex 3 times a day for one. Can’t think of anything worse personally 🤦🏻‍♀️

In that case I do apologise!

There is no easy, correct solution here. I suppose you could try to weigh up the options and imagine which causes the least damage (to your mental health, your marriage, your finances, your two existing children etc), but then even that is impossible as how would you predict or measure the impact on your mental health either way?

It’s easier to predict that your marriage, finances and perhaps your children (due to split parents, toxic environment, poverty) will all be worse off with keeping this baby, but would your regret and heartbreak be even harder to live with than all of that?

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:24

SirenScream · Today 17:18

He's adamant he doesnt want another baby, but doesnt bother to get the snip.
He's to blame.

No they both are actually.

Notmycircusnotmyotter · Today 17:24

Did you post about separate issues with him last week?

ditch the man, keep your baby

Fortheloveoffrogs · Today 17:26

A pregnancy termination can have a similar impact on your mental health as PND so whatever happens you’ll need to look after your mental health as well as you can.

I don’t think anyone can tell you the best course of action here but your DH needs to understand that if you terminate it will impact on your emotional wellbeing and your relationship. It’s not an easy thing to go through even when you are certain it’s the right thing.

I wonder if booking a session or two with a relate counsellor might help the two of you to talk it through? If you can get one quickly enough.

I really feel for you OP because you’ve got an emotional rollercoaster coming. Look after yourself extra well and be kind to yourself.

CruelsummerTS · Today 17:26

SirenScream · Today 17:18

He's adamant he doesnt want another baby, but doesnt bother to get the snip.
He's to blame.

This! I was on the fence until I read that part. If you take the baby itself out of the picture, he wants OP to have an invasive medical procedure because he didn’t get around to sorting his own medical procedure out?!

CruelsummerTS · Today 17:28

I’m pro choice but it has to be OP’s choice. Both options are hard on the mind and body. Plenty of people have children they weren’t ready for and cope fine. It’s ok for DH to have reservations and concerns but it’s not ok for him to demand an abortion.

You could agree with him, stick with 2 children and in 5 years time split, he could remarry and have 2 more!

ChampagneProblemsTS · Today 17:39

daisyydaisyy · Today 17:11

Have your baby. You will be absolutely fine and better off without this stress. Either way you will eventually split but this is YOUR decision not his. Ever.

I think this is a very irresponsible thing to say to be honest.

GreenCaterpillarOnALeaf · Today 17:40

“Husband wants to abort” he can’t abort - he does not have a womb.

If you have the baby, you may be a single mother. That’s what you need to consider. You and your kids may have to take a step down in lifestyle and that does suck - but I was raised very poor and still had a good childhood. You have a lot to consider but at the end of the day having an abortion you don’t want may well have a huge impact on you and result in your marriage ending anyway. If I were you I’d have the baby, but I don’t know all the details of your life.

HunterBidensTanktop · Today 17:40

Your husband's feelings are valid, but you can't have an abortion against your will.

Awkwardisfunny · Today 17:40

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:11

I don't necessarily agree with the comments that he has absolutely no say because it's your body, this impacts him too.

Are you a man? Of course it's entirely her choice. Or are you advocating for forced abortions? Well, you are, aren't you. Otherwise, what was the point of your post.

Bogstandardname · Today 17:41

Listen to your husband. He sounds incredibly stressed.

SparklingTurquoiseOcean · Today 17:42

Awkwardisfunny · Today 17:40

Are you a man? Of course it's entirely her choice. Or are you advocating for forced abortions? Well, you are, aren't you. Otherwise, what was the point of your post.

Why the hell do I have to be a man to believe that he has a right to an opinion in something so impactful on not only his but his family's life - forever? Jesus bloody wept. Why shouldn't he be heard as well??

Holeymoley28 · Today 17:42

Even without talking to your husband op you need to honest think deep down yourself how this will really work having another baby.

It’s easy to be omg I can’t possibly and it will all be fine.

But look at all the possible situations and then ask yourself if you can really live with them in each scenario.

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