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Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

I need help...I am at my wits end!

53 replies

Chocol8 · 29/03/2004 23:02

Where do I start? Four and a half years ago I chucked my h out because I couldn't stand his behaviour anymore. He was abusive, both mentally and physically and a heavy binge drinker. My son was one and a half at the time.
Since then, excluding a few months here and there over the last few years, he has been abusive by text and in person. I am in the process of divorcing him and he has now moved in with his girlfriend, having sold his house.
He has 2 other children, aged 15 and 10 from 2 different relationships but never sees them and hasn't contacted them for over 2 years.
His behaviour is driving me round the twist, his constant aggression and the way he twists things: ie, I remortgaged the house (which was in my name due to him having a ccj) and gave him £5,000 with the proviso that he use the money as a deposit for a house. I lent him money and helped him out, however now it is me who has "swindled him out of £5k". He lives on another planet.
My problem is that he sees his son 2 hours on a Wed and more recently for 5 hours on a Sat. If he cannot make it due to it snowing (he lives in a village) or he has other arrangements, he cancels and will not see him at any other time even if he is free. My son was diagnosed as ADHD and Asperger's last year and is on medication. He can be very hard work and I do not have a large support group. My h refuses to believe there is a problem of any sort and to my mind "uses" my son as a weapon against me. Last Sat he was busy "seeing friends" and this Sat we went to the agreed meeting place and he was late. I texted him to say we were "outside" the place rather than in, and he texted me to say he shouldn't have to wait around to see where to meet us, therefore, I had my son again for the afternoon. I explained to my son (who was worried about his daddy) that daddy was being a bit silly and had forgotten where to meet us, but not to worry as we were going to have a brilliant afternoon together. I am at my wits end with this behaviour and am so stressed that all weekend I have been having breathing problems.
The question is: is there anything I can do to stop this behaviour - there must be other women out there who recognise this scenario. I would really quite like to use his head as a punch bag...that would diminish the stress. What can I do? By the way, 8 months ago he cashed in my life policy and I have only just got the policy reinstated and the money paid back by him. PLEASE does anyone have any suggestions (other than the punch bag?).

OP posts:
Babsy · 11/04/2004 20:48

Hi Chocol8 ... this is me his first Mrs .... finally found this great website All I can say is we both know what this guy is like ... and he wont change infact he's got worse. You need to concentrate on yourself and your son .Do not allow him to have any control over your life what so ever .. you need to take control and call the shots. Dont talk to him unless you really have to , the less he knows about what you are doing the better. Ignore the "your a bad mother crap" ... I heard all of that too from him and we both know you are a good mum.As you know I have no contact with him at all ... I stopped trying to arrange access for the sake of our son and he just disappeared which in the long run is better for all of us. Children flourish with good fathers .. a useless, unreliable, abusive manipulating Dad is far more damaging than having no father at all.
And lastly .. crack the champagne !! and pat yourself on the back you're getting a divorce

Chocol8 · 11/04/2004 21:20

Ayyye, Babsy! You found Mumsnet - great isn't it? I wondered if it was you who posted on the Special Needs site and thought nah, course it's not! Thanks for your kind words - you and everyone else is right of course, he is a waste of space and in trying to hurt me he is infact hurting no one except my son. With the Asperger's it is so difficult for him to realise his "dad" (a term used very lightly) is playing games with him, and I think it will take him a long time to realise this. Anyway, until then I will continue to try and be strong and ignore the ignorant w**r. Take care Babsy, see you at my divorce party in July.

OP posts:
Chocol8 · 17/04/2004 12:04

Just a quick update: whoever it was that said "one day your ds will know what his daddy has been like", could be right sooner than anticipated: my ds hugged me this morning and said "do I have to go to daddy's today, mummy?

What could I say? I asked him if daddy had shouted at him last time and he said no, but got all tearful. I can't and wouldn't force him to go but i said if he was sure, he could stay with me but i just doing boring things this afternoon. I texted h and told him he was just a bit under the weather and was clingy, so he called the house to speak to ds. In fact my ds spent longer talking to h g/f...!

I am ridiculously grateful to my ds, and very happy in a weird way. Am I strange? I had to tell someone the good news! My ds even spoke about going every other week to see h!

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