Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

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

Cheating Husband

26 replies

ozzzz · 26/01/2015 17:47

Advice needed.
My H and I have been married for 7 years. He came over to the UK to school/work and I joined him 2 years later. We both have a boy (3) ands girl (6). We met 14years ago, as students and from a christian family and attend church. Early last year, I noticed my H was changing~was conscious of his looks, coming home late, strands of hair at home, condom in wallet, having dinners with colleagues, not picking up his phone, his phone always on silent so i don't hear when it rings, spending night at work to mark (he lectures), going for shows (has never done this before) and not having interest in the family. He gave several excuses ~ he tells me he is working hard for us so we become british citizens and we should be grateful. Most days, i feel bad and want to give him all the support. He doesnt have anything to do with the kids except for paying house rent, gas/electric bill and also £45 weekly for feeding/house upkeep. I am a graduate and am trying to look for a job here to support but it has been difficult getting one that suits my qualification. i currently work as a carer to be able to support him. i do pay council tax, support kids needs/groceries/bus pass. He doesnt see my work as a job. He criticises me for not doing anything of worth and that my mates have done better in life. i have denied myself lots of pleasures/opportunities to work around the kids but he never appreciates it. He gives me a very cold shoulder and am a very lonely migrant. My only and closest relative is far away. He doesnt concern himself with my kids. He has only been to their school once to pick up my D. He never goes to the shop to get even milk. i do all the shopping and school runs and he cant be bothered by home work or anything. He doesnt see any reason why we should buy a car....I have to get the bus always..He has never taken my kids out even when they ask him. I try my best to help him save but he keeps telling me our financial state is no good.
I told his family about the possibility of an affair and I was dismissed as he was a perfect christian and can do no such thing. His mum said he's like his dad and that I should not complain as marriage is not a bed of roses.
I confided in a male colleague of mine about these signs and he said he was sure my H was having an affair. He offered to cheer me up and started exchanging messages. He tried to help build my self-esteem/confidence and would say nasty words about my H whenever I tell him of my H 'lies'... My H saw the message and was mad and contacted my colleague and asked him never to talk to me. i have since stopped talking to this colleague to please my H as he said my colleague was grooming me for sex.
We have since been having arguments, shouting and sometimes it gets physical. I call the police once but I couldnt bear to stain him. Back home, i would be frowned at as he brought me to the UK to have a 'good life'.
Recently, i started digging into his account for information and found out that he has been cheating on me for 10months now with a colleague. I asked him about it and he flared up as to where i got my information from and why i accessed his account. He asked me to delete my copy as they are his personal files. He got physical. He stopped talking to me, became distant, no remorse and stopped eating.
I then contacted the lady as he was now talking to her in my prescence! she didnt pick up her call. I sent her a message letting her know that we are married and i want the happiness of my kids. She in turn contacted him.He became very furious and said I have destroyed his reputation. the lady replied me three days later and said she never knew he was married and that it is all over. Apparently, no one knew he was married and he was enjoying his new life.Maybe he sees her as a ladder to his professional growth.
He comes home early these days, doesnt eat, shows no remorse, very very angry with me, doesnt want to talk about our future and resents me.
I do resent him. I have lost my confidence/self-esteem. i cant believe he can do this and even try to lie all through and now accuse me of his reputation! He says he regrets bringing me over. I feel so lonely in this land and my kids live like they dont have a dad. I dont/want this anymore BUT what do I do? i think of my kids future as we have no life if we leave the uk. I wish things could be different .... He prides himself so much and no one can actually talk to him. He treats me like a thing and not a partner. I know who I am. I can be better than this, I can accomplish so much. I know I am a hard working woman and can excel but I feel so stuck with this man who abuses me.... He has got no regard for anyone yet he claims to be a christian and has said he will never apologise.... I have confided in friends and family and he resents me even more for doing so...
I am fed up. Sometimes i think of running free... sometimes I think of becoming a lesbian to escape hurt from men.... sometimes I just want to end it all....
What do I do?
Very Lonely Migrant

OP posts:
Vivacia · 26/01/2015 17:58

You don't need to escape from men, you need to escape from this man.

You are in a relationship with an abuser. He is financially and physically and emotionally abusing you.

What support do you have? (Neither he nor his family are your friends in this).

If someone told you that you and your children could go home, back to family, what would you feel?

MaMaof04 · 26/01/2015 18:37

OZZZZ- I do not know what to advise you. If I were in your situation this is what I would have done as a start:
Divorce- go back to my country and get a job there .
But you say that you cannot go back to your country. I think we will be able to help you better if we knew why you cannot go back there. Anyway, since you say that this is not an option then I advise you to
go to the church you belong to or to any church that is in your neighborhood and speak to a priest. Maybe you can divorce this guy and still stay in the UK and find a job more in line with your qualifications. There are a lot of very good day care centers in the UK. Your kids can go there when you are at work.
However I think that as long as you do not decide to divorce this guy, you will not be able to have the peaceful life you and your children deserve. Freedom starts in the mind and heart. Actions will then more easily follow. So go to a priest and talk to him and get some advice tailored to your situation. Good Luck!

flatbellyfella · 26/01/2015 18:43

You need to get away, with your children, from this abusive ,lying,cheating relationship. Leave him as soon as you possibly can. He needs a sharp shock of how life will be, looking after himself, doing his own shopping, cleaning , washing,cooking, you are being treated like a slave in a foreign country.
A nasty piece of work like that, will never change his ways.

Moniker1 · 26/01/2015 18:53

You need to make a plan.
You need to speak to someone, you can start with the Citizen's Advice Bureau, to see what your residency situation would be in the UK if you left DH.
You need to find out if you can stay in this country if you inform the police and separate due to violent abuse.
You need to save some money so you can leave if you want to.
Once you know more about the situation as regards staying in the uK you can start a plan about leaving DH, what benefits you are entitled to if on your own, where you would live etc

ozzzz · 26/01/2015 19:12

Thanks for your response. I am on a dependant visa with my kids. it is meant to be renewed this year if my H contract is renewed. I come from Nigeria and there are a hosts of terrorist activities there and I use to live in the North > there was a bomb blast close to where I once lived. I really do not want to expose my kids to this.
Also, we have only stayed for 1yr 6months and used to previously lived with his mum. She is not happy that I am speaking out and wants me as an African woman to keep silent/manage. I will be branded as an evil woman and my kids if i speak against him and do anything to jeaopardize his stay here. Afterall, he brought me here I keep getting told.
I only work as a casual care worker and dont have a full time job and may not be able to get a visa on my job.
I have spoken to my priest and he said he will speak to him but at the moment I should pray for God to change him. I need to pray more for his soul to be changed.. My H doesnt feel like discussing with anyone at the moment.. it is so frustrating especially when you cant pray anymore..

OP posts:
flatbellyfella · 26/01/2015 19:52

Ozzzz, is this a common way for Nigerian men to behave towards their wives at home in Nigeria?

ozzzz · 26/01/2015 19:57

You make me smile now @flatbellyfella... Sounds like you know one... There is an awakening going on right now in Nigeria where men now see their wives as partners but some men would rather remain in the dark age than accept women as partners.
They had rather be the BOSS

OP posts:
flatbellyfella · 26/01/2015 20:41

I worked in an environment where both men & women from Nigeria, Somali, & The Gambia had relationships that were male dominated. The women were very much stay at home after work, but the men would be out with friends.

Twinklestein · 26/01/2015 21:34

OP you sound so lovely and so sad I want to give you a hug.

You need to detach yourself from the Nigerian mindset that he brought you here - you came of your own accord to join him. He is not the boss. He is an unpleasant man who has behaved appallingly and you need to get yourself and your children away from him. He's not a Christian - a true Christian lives by Christ's teachings, he lies and cheats and treats you with no respect.

Moniker1 · 27/01/2015 13:42

I would try to get some training or studies to improve your job prospects for the future so that, if you do at some point feel you need to leave, you can finance yourself, whether here or Nigeria.
At present it looks you are stuck with him as he has the visa. But having a profession would make a difference to your prospects.

dominogocatgo · 27/01/2015 13:45

Is there any evidence that praying for anything has ever worked ??

Vivacia · 27/01/2015 15:25

Faith is something we hold to be true despite the lack of evidence, isn't it?

ozzzz · 27/01/2015 15:44

Thanks once again for your response. I do want to train more. I am currently doing the NVQ2 in socialcare which is what my job is sponsoring for but it is lower than my actual qualification (2:1- Mathematics and Computer Science). I do hope to get a job in line with my qualifications someday.
@dominogocatgo- some people testify to God changing the hearts of a cheating man after prayers... I have prayed for other things which worked but I have never had to pray for a twisted soul - at the end of the day, it is his life and his choice. ...
@Vivacia- Faith to me is holding onto the broken cords of this marriage and believing it is mended.. but I ask myself how long will I hold on? My strength is failing me. I cannot hold this cord alone. ..

OP posts:
Vivacia · 27/01/2015 15:48

What makes you think you should? Would your god want you to do this?

ozzzz · 27/01/2015 16:03

My God says He hates divorce but it is permitted if adultery happens...

OP posts:
flatbellyfella · 27/01/2015 16:15

Best wishes towards your prayers being answered Ozzzz Flowers

MaMaof04 · 27/01/2015 16:29

I am not a religious person myself. I am a pragmatic. If faith helps someone then it is His/Her God- his/her strength to change his/her circumstances and his/her heart for the better. Having said so Ozzz, I am afraid you are trapped in some patriarchal concept of God that obliges a woman to comply to her husband's whims no matter how detrimental his behavior is to her and to her kids. Christians' God Jesus preaches love and forgiveness but before anything else His Love for children and women (regardless of their legitimacy or rank in the society) precedes Love and Forgiveness. In fact the Love and Forgiveness he preaches are valid only as long as they serve the weakest in the society- in your case it is you and your kids , not this kind of marriage. So forget about forgiveness and focus on yourself and on the well being of your kids- and try to separate from this man. You can think about forgiveness WHEN he has changed (and not if he just says I will change). Now about your qualifications: it does not matter what is your job as long as it is decent and allows you and your kids a decent living far from this man. So focus on what you do now. When you have your NVQs and a steady job in caring, then try to do some Maths/Computer Teaching courses in the evening. Move a step at a time and aim as high as you can- you and your kids deserve it. Big Hugs!

Vivacia · 27/01/2015 17:32

but before anything else His Love for children and women (regardless of their legitimacy or rank in the society) precedes Love and Forgiveness.

This is interesting, but I think it's an interpretation rather than from the bible.

OP my point was to confirm that your religion doesn't hold you to this treatment.

ozzzz · 27/01/2015 18:22

What great explanation of what society in relation to faith should be. My priest planned to see him today but he just confirmed my H didn't show up. Never regards anyone.... He has changed his phone number for a week now so no one can contact him. I have asked for his number as they are my/kids emergency contact but he has refused to give it... I am replacing them with a friend soon.. what a heart.
It hurts so much a he is my first love and one whom I have sacrifice so much for.

OP posts:
MaMaof04 · 27/01/2015 18:27

Yeah Vivacia, it is an interpretation. I might be wrong. In fact as a non-religious person (moving between atheism and agnosticism) I would say that I am probably wrong. But Vivacia my message is similar to yours: you just think more clearly than I do and enunciate your thoughts more neatly than I do. That is my ADD side: my thinking and my writing are not clear.
So OZZZ as Vivacia said: your religion does not hold you to this treatment and cut the marriage ropes if they tie to it. Good Luck. You and your kids deserve better.

AcrossthePond55 · 27/01/2015 18:50

ozzz as a Christian woman myself I will tell you that you need to leave this man. The Bible teaches in the New Testament that a man should love his wife as Christ loved the Church. Did Christ 'cheat' on the Church? Did he 'get physical' with the Church? Did he treat the Church badly? Of course not! He loved the Church and considered it above all things in His decisions. Why else would He have sacrificed His very life for the Church?

You can't change another person, pray though you might. You can pray that God will touch him, but he has to be open to God's touch. And he isn't open to that. He isn't even a Christian, profess it as he might. A Christian man lives by Christ's teachings, he doesn't just mouth the words.

You need to get away. I can understand not wanting to go back to a place where you have a legitimate fear of violence. I'm not in the UK, so I can't give you specific advice, but you may want to contact the Visa agency. I know there are exemptions in US policy for victims of domestic violence allowing them to get separate visas from their abusive spouses. Maybe there is something similar in the UK?

You are in my prayers.

ozzzz · 27/01/2015 19:19
Smile Not thinking clearly. .. Not feeling good.. Don't forget me when you pray tonight. . Thanks all
OP posts:
Crunchybadger · 27/01/2015 23:19

Oh ozzzz that sounds awful. He's using his power over you to treat you horribly. Please seek out some advice on your options: try Women's Aid 0808 2000 247.

I'm an atheist, so I'm afraid I can't see what help praying will do. I appreciate it may give you some comfort, but it won't change the situation. If he really believed he wouldn't act like this, either.

Since I can't pray for you, I am, however, hoping you can break free.

Re: the police and violence. You say you "couldn't bear to stain him" by pressing charges. But he is choosing to hurt you; this is his choice and he should bear the consequences. I hope you can find some resolution. You deserve better.

Crunchybadger · 29/01/2015 18:59

You OK OP?

ozzzz · 29/01/2015 19:17

Crunchybadger... I am ok today... Entertained myself with a movie "diary of a mad black woman" it spoke to me in different ways.. I tried calling Womensaid several times but no response. Dropped my number but didn't hear from them.
I am taking one day at a time now and speaking positive words to myself to help heal my wounds.
Thanks for checking up on me.. cheers.

OP posts: