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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

Advice needed - heads totally fucked

97 replies

WankingMonkey · 26/01/2017 22:06

I don't really know what I hope to achieve by writing this. I guess I am just looking for unbiased opinions..this is likely to be long as I don't want to be dripfeeding later on so I will try to cover as much as I can

I have been with my husband coming up 10 years now. He has always been a bit jealous and possessive but its never caused any real problems until pretty recently. Yeah we have bickered about stuff, but never properly fell out over it.

This will seem irrelevant but it may go someway to explaining some of the recent behaviour. I don't know if it does as I do tend to think sometimes he uses this as an excuse but anyway. My mother has always favoured my sister. I have in the past got upset about this. My mother also did not come to my wedding. She had plans, though there was a few months notice and honestly, its something thats easily rearranged/cancelled. She has also previously fell out with my husband though they seem to get on fine now.

I rarely go out on my own. This is partly as we are very skint and partly as I canot be arsed to deal with the strops that would happen if I did. I know this makes me seem a fool from the offset for putting up with this, but as I said, its never really been that much of an issue before. However, because of this, I have pretty much isolated myself from my group of 'friends outside of him'.

I am currently on medication for chronic pain issues. My pain means I am often unable to do anything at all besides lie/sit in agony for hours on end. When this happens, he deals with the children as I can only give cuddles and talk to them. I am quite sure I could not manage on my own due to this, though I know thats not a reason to ignore this (what I think is) pretty shocking behaviour.

So. It has been my birthday recently. My mother paid for a spa day with overnight stay for me as she said I could do with a break plus she had done the same for my sister on her birthday. I was pretty happy, its quite rare I spend any time one on one with my mother, and though we have had problems in the past about various things, we are pretty close and tend to get on well. She informed me of this a month or so before we were due to go. My husband had a bit of a bitch on about it, long the lines of 'she doesn't care any other time so why now' and such, that I brushed off and told him to not be so silly and that I was looking forward to it. Then everything seemed fine. Until 2 weeks before I was due to go when he suddenly decided that he absolutely had to go to the same spa. He knew round about when we were going but dates aren't his strong suit. He went ahead and booked for the 23rd Jan. He then claimed that this was nothing to do with us, just something he wanted to do. I was suspicious tbh as he is not really a spa person at all and it just seemed too coincidental that he had had a problem previously and then happened to book for that date..so (and I may have been in the wrong here) I lied to him and said that thats perfectly fine as we were going on the 21st so would be back intime for him to go so there would be no issues with childcare and that. He then 'randomly' decided that he didn't want to go on the 23rd, but he absolutely had to go on the 21st. Now, I knew he was just trying to cause problems for sure. At this stage I told him he was just being a dick, and that he could go anytime he wanted and he was obviously trying to cause trouble..he denied this and stuck to his 'I just want to go, and just happened to book what I thought was the same day as you, then change it the same day as you when I thought I was wrong on the date you were going..total coincidence'. After this followed 3 DAYS of bitching on. Saying I should cancel with my mam as she doesn't 'give a fuck any other time' and then trying to persuade me to go with him instead...even then deciding that me and him were to go the night before I was due to go with my mam, then me go back. At this stage I was just irritated with him and (again I may be at fault here) started just either ignoring his snipes or giving sarcastic replies. He continued kicking off and eventually I snapped and told him to grow the fuck up and pull himself together and under no circumstances would I be not going to this day/night with my mother. He then decided to tell me hes not been feeling himself recently and tried to tell me he had attempted suicide by tying a plastic bag round his head..but failed as there was holes in. Now, call me cynical but I knew this was bullshit, but on the offchance he was actually feeling suicidal instead of trying to manipulate me, I said that if he was really feeling that way he should speak to a GP. He called the GP the next day and got a sameday appointment, was given some antidepressants and a follow up appointment for the next week. He did not take the tablets, and cancelled the appointment for the next week also. He then kept dropping little comments pitying himself because I was so horrible as to still stick to my spa day when I knew he was feeling down, and so on. He was behaving so erratically I asked his father to watch the kids the night I was away. Because both...there was a 0.01% chance he was actually ill and not trying to be a dick and was a bit worried about leaving the kids with him if he was as unstable as he was coming across, plus I could see him deciding the day before or something that he couldn't watch the kids as a means of giving me no option but to stay home. Obviously his dad wanted to know what the hell was going on, so I told him. He called my husband and told him to stop being such an idiot..at this stage my husband tried playing the 'I have done nothing wrong' card and accused me of making it all up...however, after his conversation with his dad, during which his dad told him in no uncertain terms that he knows I did not make it up...everything seemed to calm down.

Infact, things seemed...too good. I should have suspected something at this stage really as it was a bit odd to switch from how he had been...to offering to pack my bags and being overly happy about the whole situation. So the day came, I went, everything seemed to be fine. I got to sleep before 12am for the first time in months (I don't sleep well) and then at 1.30am..we are knocked out of bed by the hotel receptionist. She tells my mam that there has been a drunk guy on the phone who is saying he is my husband and there is something wrong with my children as a means to speak to me. I called him back off my mothers mobile and he slurs 'I don't like being in this house on my own, come home now'. I know he is pissed..its blatantly obvious. I cannot be arsed with his drunken paranoia and stuff and am so tired and just told him I would speak to him when he was sober. He tells me he hasn't touched a drop of alcohol and the only reason he is slurring is because he currently (whilst talking to me) has a sandwich in his mouth (?!). He won't answer anything about the kids..so I say bye and call his dad to check if the kids are actually ill as was claimed or if (and this was my suspicion) he was trying to manipulate me again. Obviously, turned out there was nothing wrong with the kids, but his dad wanted to know why I had called him at 1.30 asking about them so again, I am not going to lie about it. I told him. I should probably mention at this stage, that he threatened the receptionist. I am not sure exactly what he said to her, but she told us he had threatened her and was saying he would come down there and bless her she seemed so apologetic even though it was not her fault at all. She also said if he did turn up, she would have to phone the police. I said fine, it might teach him a lesson to be banged up for the night as he can't go around threatening random people. About 15 mins after this, I get a call back off my father in law...my husband had claimed he was asleep all fucking night and that the call off his dad had just woken him up. So yet again trying to make out I was making it all up. His dad had then asked what he was playing at calling the hotel and threatening the receptionist and he said she was making it up (tripping up his 'I was fast asleep' story at the same time)...this is a woman who has never met him ever, has no axe to grind at all, and who was simply doing her job. Again, his dad told him he was being an arsehole and hung up. I then got a text saying nothing but 'goodbye' which I took to be him threatening suicide or something, and this may not have been my finest hour as I guess there was a small chance he was serious but I told my mam that I was 100% sure he was just manipulating me again...so fuck him. And ignored it. It also came out when I did get home (no earlier than planned) that he had spent all of our money out on the piss, buying everyone rounds and stuff. I was soo pissed off as we are so short on cash anyway at the moment and he had spent over 200 quid in a night. All seemingly to punish me for daring to go somewhere without him...

That was the end of all of that. Then my dad upon hearing of the whole event commented on my mothers facebook status about the spa, that 'it should have been a nice relaxing night if someone didn't ruin it. Some leopards never change their spots' or something. I hate facebook dramas but what my dad puts is upto him and its not really like anyone (bar me, my husband and his father) would even know what the hell he was on about. So the next morning I am woken up by my husband banging around going on about some 'dickhead' and that. I ask what on earths the matter and he says my dad put up that about him..well I knew this the day before but I guess he just didn't see it til the morning. He then bangs around a bit more muttering on, then comes back in with a huge smile on his face saying 'I told your arsehole father whats up'. With dread I check facebook and he has put up a status directed at my father calling him a dickhead and saying he needs to 'take a look at his wife before slagging others off'...so also insulting my mother at the same time. He then proceeds to tell me that my parents are no longer welcome in this house, and pretty much offers me an unltimatum between him and them...which I ignored completely. I hate people who ask others to make decisions like that (especially over something so small...). I then started texting my mam asking her/my dad to please not reply and put our lives on facbook even though I know that I would have a hard time not replying to that. I told my mother about what had gone on and she said it was a disgusting thing to ask me and that noone should ever expect their partner to make a choice like that. So that day...a lot of stropping and such, and random mentions of how he 'spoke to that girls manager and she will probably get sacked' for 'lying about him' and such. Yeah right...sure she will. Even less sure when I wrote out a whole comment card thing complimenting her on how professional she was throughout it all and apologising to her once again on behalf of my husband...

Today...it just seems he is wanting to argue for nothing. He woke me up this morning going on about how if I want him to leave he will leave and why don't I just tell him I don't want to be with him and such. I told him if he wants to leave thats up to him but not to make out it was my decision. He then decided he was sorry for saying this and that he didn't mean anything, but starts going on about how I should 'stick up for him' against my parents. I told him I would, if he was in the right but I do not think he is. Quiet for a bit, then he starts making cryptic comments about ultimatums and how he wouldn't like the answer (my message to my mum about this was something along the lines of 'if he pushes me for an answer, he won't like the answer I give' so it was fairly clear he had been reading my facebook messages). Pretty much brushed it off as I just feel so drained. Just kinda said 'ok' to pretty much everything for the rest of the day and didn't speak properly to him at all as I was so annoyed. Then he starts bleating on about getting some protein powder for the gym. We have had discussions about this before and when he started doing the gym he agreed that until our money situation is better...he wouldn't be asking for crap like that. Honestly, after how much of our money he wasted I felt he had such a cheek even mentioning this protein rubbish. I told him we do not have 30 quid to buy some powder that he doesn't need. He stropped. He asked again, I answered the same. He stropped and said he wouldn't bother going to the gym at all as there is no point without using protein powder. I stayed calm (though was screaming inside) and said that if he didn't want to go to the gym anymore, its entirely his choice. Half an hour later, he starts banging on about the powder again. I am sick to the back teeth of it all at this stage so I go upstairs out of the way, he shouts me back down and I say no, I have had enough. Hear a load of banging, which was clearly him throwing stuff around (though again, he denies that he threw anything, claims he fell over...4 times in a row and whilst muttering onto himself about how horrible I am)...and now here I am writing this out on my laptop in my bedroom while he huffs downstairs.

I am pretty sure this behavior isn't normal. What the fuck do I do? I cannot deal with anymore of this childishness and I have kids to think about also who don't need to see their father behaving like a petulant teenager.

Or is it me that needs to be more understanding..am I blowing this out of proportion?

My head is up my arse tbh.

OP posts:
Mulberry72 · 27/01/2017 16:16

Please, please get yourself and your children away from this nutcase, and get a restraining order so he had to keep away.

Flowers For you and your family.

Deathraystare · 27/01/2017 16:21

Clearly there is something really wrong with him. He is acting like a man-child and you already have kids. Ignore as much as you can and plan to chuck him out asap. He is raving bonkers.

wherearemymarbles · 27/01/2017 16:25

what a pathetic little man your husband is.

Seems like long term constant low level abuse which has now been escalating

Ltb is the only real solution.

pudding21 · 27/01/2017 16:36

Monkey: if you can find the strength to leave do it. Get support in real life and go. My OH is emotionally abusive and in the summer he was feeling very insecure and it escalated. I shouldv'e left and I didn't. He has been varying from slightly delusional to charming ever since. They are master manipulators and because you are a kind person, you put up with it. Its not acceptable what he has done, but don't wait like me until the next time. I am sitting on a time bomb waiting to have the right excuse to leave. I know it sounds crazy, but most of the time he is ok.

I am working through my own issues (self esteem, self worth, that I don't deserve this shit and neither do the kids), before I feel strong enough to leave. If it feels like you need to in your gut, don't deny it, push on through and keep re-reading this thread to reinforce how you are feeling. One day I might take my own advice, but until you are ready you won't do it.

Good luck and be safe Flowers

Nanna50 · 27/01/2017 16:41

Take your DC to your parents now, the weekend will give you breathing space and help build your resolve. Take money out of the account and read your OP again. I don't know what causes your pain but living with that tension will only make it worse. Don't feel guilty, contact woman aid, go on their website, set yourself free and you will cope.

QuarterMileAtATime · 27/01/2017 17:10

One of the loudest and clearest 'LTB' ever tbh. His behaviour is scary. Really scary. You have one life - do not waste it with this person.

cordeliavorkosigan · 27/01/2017 17:17

Yes. We all have just the one life. Would you want your daughter living like this, or your friend? Stay strong op.

WankingMonkey · 27/01/2017 17:36

No I wouldn't I would tell her to run as fast as she fucking could.

OP posts:
Underthemoonlight · 27/01/2017 18:01

If you feel he could run violent I would get yourself and DC out of that environment he sounds unhinged and unpredictable

mathanxiety · 28/01/2017 01:34

It is outright aggression. There is no other word for torturing someone.

sofato5miles · 28/01/2017 02:02

My eyes pricked with tears reading your posts. How awful that this frightening man has you in this position. He is delusional and dangerous.

I have read on MN that in dv situations, leaving is the most dangerous time and violence can escalate. Please be incredibly vigilant and quick.

You poor, poor fucker. He has done this, not you.

mummyto2monkeys · 28/01/2017 03:15

Hi Monkey, I want to send you big hugs, please if you can, contact woman's aid! Domestic violence is often very common in situations where one partner is disabled, it is even worse as you have to rely on your abuser day to day to meet your basic needs and you end up thinking that there is no way out. Abusers know that you are vulnerable without them and play on that situation! Woman's Aid have experience of this dynamic and will be able to help you escape and find care to support you and your children. You can ask for support to contact the adult care team/ children and family team for an assessment for personal care. I'm not in an abusive relationship but I am severely disabled and I now have several personal carers who help me with personal care, help around the house and support me in my role as a Mother. This is on top of having my husband as my full time carer too! Social services do not advertise the fact that disabled people are entitled to care! But it is there!

How old are your children? I'm sorry if I have missed this, if under five they may be able to fund a full time nursery placement, or if school age they may provide funding for a breakfast club and an after school club. Woman's aid should be able to help you access support via social services. Please don't think they will immediately remove your children! I made this mistake and my fear prevented our family from accessing much needed support earlier! Contact with social services can be overwhelming, so I definitely recommend contacting your local advocacy service, and asking for support in your interactions with social services. We have used advocacy services several times and it was such a relief to have someone there who was working hard to get our needs met!

ageingrunner · 28/01/2017 08:18

Hope you're ok Wanking Flowers

tipsytrifle · 28/01/2017 12:54

You didn't fuck up WM. You just behaved as a rational reasonable normal person. He isn't any of those things. Might be an idea not to revisit that exchange with him and focus purely on making a plan to get away from him. It's the w/e now but it would still be worth trying to get through to WA. And parents too. That's if you can engineer any time w/out him looking over your shoulder. Could he be sent out to get some of that precious protein powder? Or would that be a ruse best kept for escape day? I think you have to get canny and cunning.

This man is not your friend and the sooner you switch your lovely self into survival mode, watching his every move as he watches yours, the more likely it is that you'll be able to think clearly and plot. I do think you're going to need RL help but recognise too you might need to basically do a runner. Get some of your pain killers and/or meds ready for a quick grab if you can. I'm so sorry you're in this situation but I'm also sure that you're going to get out Chocolate

Offred · 28/01/2017 14:44

You need to stop this guilty feeling that you have failed because you didn't leave.

The absolutely and clearly rational assessment of what happened is that you are an intelligent, patient and calm person in an extremely challenging and difficult position who has just been blindsided by the magnitude of things now you have sat back and realised what is going on.

You have a truly exceptionally clear sense of what is happening and what needs to happen.

You have made some massive steps forward and towards acting on the situation.

It didn't work out this time but with it not working out you have learned some more important information which can help it ultimately work out.

You will succeed.

I second speaking to women's aid and going through a leaving plan and getting some emotional support to see the recent successes rather than focus on the failures, which is only happening likely because you now are feeling the immediacy which goes along with feeling trapped.

Offred · 28/01/2017 14:47

I would tell her to run as fast as she fucking could.

This is what is influencing my thinking.

In reality no-one is actually capable of going 0-60 like this. No-or runs away as fast as they possibly can, even if they aren't in pain.

You simply cannot place that expectation on yourself. It is not fair and it won't help you.

BonnyScotland · 28/01/2017 20:23

this is appalling to read... how have you managed to keep a lid on your sense and sensibilities..... this guy is unstable ...

tipsytrifle · 29/01/2017 01:01

Wonderful post Offred - what d'you reckon WM?

PowerPantsRule · 29/01/2017 07:56

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MiscellaneousAssortment · 29/01/2017 15:07

Hi OP. I'm so sorry this is happening to you.

I became very disabled with a fluctuating and chronic illness 6 uts ago. And I found myself in an abusive relationship, with a small baby. It was awful.

And when I first realised what situation me & DS were in, I tried general agencies / people to help but they ignored the reality and extent of my physical disability, so same advice as any dv victim and a belief that I'd miraculously find myself well again when I left him.

Which might be the case for some people who've been brainwashed to think they depend on their abuser, but no, not really when you are genuinely physically disabled and you rely on your abusive partner for basic care and help with the children.

I'd recommend WA and also adult social services. But if it's possible with your parents support to go through the adult ss assessment, if they are helpful?

It's tricky as I'm afraid your situation has got very scary very quickly. And adult ss aren't really set up to deal with the secrecy and careful timing that would need to happen if you got an assessment whilst your partner was still around.

It was only when I'd been assessed (twice) by social services and had got some care in place that I managed to get him out.

The first time it was crap but the second time the assessor was horrified and put most of my needs as critical and that's when I started to get help and also get through their system to a point where my care package was very tailored to me.

But you can't do it that way round. It's gone so scary so quickly. And no, not your fault in any way so please try to stop blaming yourself or telling yourself off. Brew

You need an exit plan that puts your health and disabilities right at the centre. But it needs to happen quickly. I definitely suggest women's aid, and also can you see if there are local charities that do support adults with disabilities? Councils often farm out some of their duties to local charities so they may be very involved with how to make it happen for you.

Nowadays 5 yrs later, I rely completely on carers & it's easier as DS is at school now.

I won't lie it's still ruddy difficult, but that's my sodding illness making it so hard. I don't think I'd still be coping if stbxh was still around. It took me a long time to get enough perspective to see how bad it was. And one thing I really wish I could change is the neck injury he left me with that is very difficult to live with. It was his main act of physical abuse though there was a lot I ignored/ excused at the time. i didn't take the danger seriously, or at least, I mean I couldn't take it as seriously as it was as I was locked into relying on him too much. When he snapped, he hit me in the neck and I went flying across the room and hit my head on the wall. Lost consciousness for a little bit I think and then adrenaline kicked in and I was standing between him and the baby's room trying to calm him down. Trouble is, I found out later, way after the bruises had gone, the damage he did stopped me from being able to support my neck for more than a few mins at a time. It's still a bad weak spot now.

I would do anything to go back and get away before that happened. I don't talk about it much but I'm worried about you and how careful you need to be right now. So hard to see the reality of what's happening and what the man you love has become. But please don't underestimate the damage he could do in a split second of 'losing control'...

What is amazing now is having help that doesn't rely on you accepting the abuse and control that goes hand in hand with it. And when he storms out leaving you (deliberately) without help just when he knows you need it... well, how can you pace and manage your condition in that situation?

I under estimated how much stbxh's abuse undermined my care. I'm in a lot less pain now day to day x

RedastheRose · 29/01/2017 16:06

He sounds like he is an emotionally abusive prick. Read up about narcissistic tendencies and see if it rings any warning bells! I wasted 10 years of my life with someone like this. We were together for 28 years but up until we no longer needed my salary to live a comfortable life he seemed to value me. When he started earning serious money and we finally became comfortably off he started being an absolute bastard. So the 'he wasn't always like this' could well be true if your circumstances have changed due to your illness. I wasn't allowed to have a life either, alienated from friends and distanced from family. He hated it when I got back in touch with my friends and started insisting on having my own life rather than being a 'bit part player' in his. I would have to say that even with your health problems that you need to ask him to leave and get help for his issues. Like you I thought that depression was the cause of his horrendous behaviour and treatment of me and that if he could get treatment for that then we would be ok again but in reality I think the person I was with for the last 10 years really was the real him he just no longer cared about keeping that part of his personality hidden because he thought that his money made it unnecessary for him to be a normal person anymore.

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