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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

Am I as bad as he’s making out, am I crazy?

52 replies

marieosullivan · 07/04/2019 06:42

I was having this on and off distant relationship with a guy that ended suddenly last week.. before this, a couple of times he told me i was too needy and broke it off with me (because He always seemed evasive and non commital), but we had a lot of chemistry and he was in some ways really kind and passionate towards me, and great with my kids. Anyway, we arranged a holiday get away streets away from near where he lives in a nice little B&B on the seafront his friends ran, where I travelled across the country to meet him, while on the long train journey, he told me over text, ‘DON’T pressure me to meet you at 6 tonight!!, I can’t deal with any stress today and need to relax’... (he’d had a hard day, he lost his bag on the bus and had a bit of a ball ache getting it back, but as did I, who had been carrying heavy luggage , taking kids to grandmas, , going on several modes of transport, dealing with busy terminals etc to come and see specifically him ), so this wasn’t exactly the romantic welcome I’d hoped for, we had been planning this holiday for weeks, so i was taken aback by his tone , firstly i wasn’t at all pressuring him in anyway, so this seemed quite strange and out of the blue thing to say... but also I was getting in at 5, so he’d already pushed the meeting time back a whole hour, which actually I just took in my stride, didn’t even blink an eye about ,just brushed it off, But i was there to see him, and only him, I now was going to have to deal with the place we were staying , which was owned by his friends I’d never met, alone, and it really made me feel uneasy and anxious, and sad, like unimportant to him, considering the fact he had nothing other to do than go fishing to ‘relax his nerves’, it seemed like he was being aggressive too , like i’d been on his case, which I hadn’t.

all of my instincts were saying this was way off, this is untrustworthy behaviour. so I said i didn’t like his attitude, but it would be ok, and he should take as long as he wanted to rest, but please if he has to change meeting times, can he next time apologise for the disruption and say it a bit nicer’ , he got mad and said that was a horrible thing to say, like I was telling him off. So I explained why it felt like crap the way he said that and that i needed him to show more respect to me when I had travelled so far, and it was quite a big deal for me to do that, so much time and effort to come and see him. He then suddenly ended the relationship over the phone and hung up. I was left in a different part of the country, staying with strangers for a week, as train fares last minute home were extortionate.

he lived streets away and never visited or checked in, other than he told me in a couple of messages that he would never put up with this kind of crap from anyone else and that he wished he had never allowed me into his life, which seemed really over reactionary.

These words rung in my ears the whole week, I had an awful time. I had experienced a lot of heartbreak, my husband left me for another woman a year ago, and this was my first foray into another romance. I felt totally deserted, and now also like some kind of pariah , that I was somehow bad and wrong, but still underneath it I knew I didn’t deserve that

. I wish i hadn't Said anything about the attitude he seemed to have, but I was just trying to not be a doormat I support, I felt disrespected.

OP posts:
Lobsterquadrille2 · 07/04/2019 08:02

You are definitely not crazy in any way. He sounds absolutely horrible. Why wouldn't you meet halfway if the distance between you was so great?

Sounds to me as if he is married too - however on the plus side, at least you won't bump into him in your hometown.

Chalk it down to experience.

ILiveInSalemsLot · 07/04/2019 08:03

He’s either married or thinks only of himself. Good riddance.

thewooster · 07/04/2019 08:04

What an absolute bellend. Block him and move on.

You are worth so much more than this man.

IM0GEN · 07/04/2019 08:08

Block and delete. You have dodged a bullet.

Don’t let the next guy meet your kids.

CherryPavlova · 07/04/2019 08:10

The whole thing feels very odd, to be honest.
Why would he book accommodation close to home for a holiday and why would you not question that?
Why are you going to stay a week with someone you don’t really know at all and who seems to have made very little effort towards building a relationship?
It all sounds the exact opposite of what a healthy relationship looks like - even in the new relationship stage. That’s when both parties generally try to impress the most; when they go out of their way to be lovely and considerate.
You need to, perhaps tread more carefully, to build a more local relationship where you can take time to know each other before jumping into holidaying together. It might be worth consciously stepping back from any partnership until you are in a better place to judge men wisely.
It sounds like he’s married or a complete weirdo.

Pianobook · 07/04/2019 08:18

You did the right thing by calling him on his behaviour but I’m not sure why you went to so much effort to see him in the first place for an ‘on and off distant relationship.’

I can’t believe you stayed a week and I can’t believe he didn’t visit you. Really awful.

Please don’t put yourself out for someone like him again.

Loopytiles · 07/04/2019 08:20

Why on earth did you introduce a man who treated you like this to your DC?

Agree with PPs: don’t date until you’ve worked on your self esteem and boundaries.

BorsetshireBlew · 07/04/2019 08:23

You WERE being disrespected, massively. Don't regret the fact that you stuck up for yourself because that led to him breaking up with you. Rejoice that you stood up for yourself and that led him to show you what an awful person he is.

DogHairEverywhere · 07/04/2019 08:23

Well done you for trying to communicate your needs to him. It would have been too easy to accept his rude tone and say nothing to keep the peace, but you set out your boundary well.
You'll look back and realise you've had a lucky escape with this one, but it's good that you found out now, rather than let his behaviour slide, then struggle to extricate yourself later.
Remember, it's not you, it's him.

minesasaugagesupper · 07/04/2019 08:24

Did you have to pay to stay at the B&B? And you stayed for a whole week on your own? You must have had spending money with you. Even if the trains were too expensive surely there must have been some sort of a bus service that you could have got back to wherever you live. All seems a bit odd to me.

Dvg · 07/04/2019 08:25

Definitely Dodged a bullet, who talks to someone like that :S sounds like an emotionally abusive man to me

Tinkoschminko · 07/04/2019 08:25

No way. Any time you meet your LDR they should be delighted. If they’ve had a shit day, all the more reason to look forward to seeing you. He was totally in the wrong.

Ilikeslippers · 07/04/2019 08:26

I wish i hadn't Said anything about the attitude he seemed to have

I am glad you did say something! It gave him the space to show his true colours. Now you don't have to waste years of your life with him.

He behaved with utter selfishness and disregard for you
.
When you reasonably explained how his behaviour impacted on you, he lost it. You can't be with a man who can't tolerate you asserting your basic right to being treated with equality and respect.

You just escaped a relationship with an emotionally abusive man. All strength to you!

Middersweekly · 07/04/2019 08:30

It is definitely not you @OP! He sounds abusive and quite possibly in a relationship that he’s trying to hide!
If I had spent time and money going to see someone I would be utterly furious with the tone of that message!
You had a lucky escape! He sounds like a psychopath!

TowelNumber42 · 07/04/2019 08:31

What an utter loon. You are well rid. It is all him being a loon, not you. Your response to his 6pm shit message was far too nice btw. He was being an utter shit.

Pianobook · 07/04/2019 08:32

Even if you hadn’t said anything, he was going to give you the run around ie telling you he was too stressed to meet you at the arranged time. He was looking for an excuse to go awol.

Fairylea · 07/04/2019 08:39

He is awful but you definitely need to work on your boundaries. You say your dh left last year and here’s this loser guy who’s already met your kids despite having an on / off relationship and quite frankly speaks to you like shit - you need to have the strength and confidence in yourself to say no, mean it and walk away whenever those little red flags come up. Booking somewhere near where he lives and speaking to you like that = red flag.

You need some time on your own to work out who you are, to love yourself - as cheesy as it sounds- and only then should you even think about meeting someone else. And they shouldn’t meet your kids until you’re confidence they’re serious and going to hopefully become a permanent fixture!

Dieu · 07/04/2019 08:57

I think you both sound like really hard work.
You're a grown adult. Why all the fuss about going to the holiday property alone, and meeting an hour later?!
What a drama.

Dillydallyalltheway · 07/04/2019 08:57

As others have said, leave him. He’s childish and sounds like a child. This isn’t going to get any better, would you want your children meeting an idiot like this.he said you sound like you are telling him off , well he deserves to be treated like a child if he acts like one. Also I understand you wanted a break away with him, but why the hell did you do all the traveling, it would be so much more easier for him to do it, especially as you have children. There is always a chance that you may need to rush home in case of an emergency, so why he didn’t come closer to you, I don’t really understand.

You need to have some self respect and not let him treat you like this, it’s very doubtful that he will get any better as the time goes by.

MashedSpud · 07/04/2019 09:04

He's married or living with someone and panicked when you arrived (maybe his plans for her to be out the way for a while failed) so he was rude rather than admit he's a lying snake.

JaniceBattersby · 07/04/2019 09:05

He sounds like a horrible bastard and you’ve had a lucky escape.

Next time. Look for kindness in a man. If will get you a long way.

GuineaPiglet345 · 07/04/2019 09:11

You did the right thing, he would have only got worse if you’d let him walk all over you.

DameSquashalot · 07/04/2019 09:12

He sounds really selfish and incredibly dramatic. You deserve someone who has the ability to think about other people.

GottaGoGottaGo · 07/04/2019 09:13

He's married and realised he couldn't get away so he tried to make it out to be your fault.

Lucky escape!

Spudlet · 07/04/2019 09:27

Joining in the chorus of he's a bellend. Thank goodness he revealed his bellendery at an early stage, before he'd got his feet under the table.

Move onwards and upwards, free from the burden of bellendery!