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Feeling pressured into an abortion I don't want by DH and family

999 replies

NooNooHead · 22/09/2019 20:25

I am nearly 6 weeks pregnant with my DC3 that was unplanned. We have two wonderful DC, a DD who is 8 and my DS who is 15months.

My family has said they want me to get an abortion as we can't afford another child, that I won't cope with another, it isn't fair on my current DC, or the rest of the family who might have to support me. My DM told me to stop being self indulgent and think of the bigger picture, our tight financial situation etc.
So I guess I will be phoning the clinic tomorrow.

I just feel like I am being coerced and controlled by my family and there is nothing I can say or do. All the points that they make are valid but it doesn't make me feel any easier about the decision. My mum said to me earlier 'don't hate me for this'...

I understand all of their points and I know they are valid reasons for ending the pregnancy. I would also feel very selfish if I carried on and that my family probably wouldn't support me much.

I just feel so sad and conflicted with what I should do.Sad

OP posts:
NooNooHead · 30/09/2019 20:34

Thank you Iggi999 - it was an avoidable accident though. Yes, you are right - it did have a
tremendous upon my life, although it has made me so much stronger.

OP posts:
Gazelda · 30/09/2019 20:45

OP, I feel so sad at you and your situation. It must be heartbreaking for you.

But I honestly don't think you have all the relevant facts.

you don't have full visibility of your financial situation

If you did, and were able to agree a reasonable budget going forward, then you might find that your situation isn't as stark as you currently believe.

You might, of course, see that the finances simply don't add up which will help shape your decision.

I don't think you can make a decision that you will be able to make peace with unless you and your DH have an honest, calm and thorough review of your finances.

BendyLikeBeckham · 30/09/2019 21:23

Most accidents are avoidable tbh, but it doesn't make them any less of an accident. There needs to be no blame here for yours, especially on yourself. Shit happens. You have and are dealing with it. Guilt and regret destroy you, I have learned that over the years.

my decision will have to be made by me actually being totally honest with myself and asking how it will truly impact upon my family, both long and short term with either outcome

And how it will impact upon YOU

It is not selfish to consider your own feelings, wants and wellbeing (physical and mental).

0lga · 30/09/2019 21:30

Most accidents are avoidable tbh, but it doesn't make them any less of an accident. There needs to be no blame here for yours, especially on yourself. Shit happens. You have and are dealing with it. Guilt and regret destroy you, I have learned that over the years

Exactly. If your husband had been injured in a car crash that wasn’t his fault, would you say it was self inflicted because he could have chosen to leave 5 minutes earlier and therefore would not have been in that place at that moment ?

Mermaidsinthesand · 30/09/2019 21:39

I've never come across so many problems in one thread

OP you need to concentrate on what your going to do going forward as soon as

NooNooHead · 30/09/2019 21:53

Mermaidsinthesand it does appear that I am winning the prize for a fair few problems, yes!😣🙄🤣

OP posts:
NooNooHead · 30/09/2019 22:01

I think that this thread will win the prize for the most amount of issues that need dealing with.... not something I am boasting about, of course..!😉🙄😔

OP posts:
Apileofballyhoo · 30/09/2019 22:19

OP, can you ask your DH for his bank statements, or his online banking?

Do you know exactly how much he earns? How much he earns net?

To be honest if I had a termination for financial reasons while my DH was driving an expensive car I don't think I'd ever forgive him.

How far a drive is it to his Mum's? Why does he have to stay there overnight?

Have you shown this thread to your DM yet?

Namenic · 30/09/2019 23:49

OP - you have my sympathies. It is a really hard situation. It sounds like you need some counselling to think through all these issues, possibly with your DH as well.

I don’t know how things work, but would adoption be something that is a possibility? Would your gp be able to refer you for some specialist counselling (taking into account your pregnancy and mental and physical health)?

You sound like you have a lot of anxiety, which is another thing you could address with your gp. Don’t feel bad about the accident that gave you the head injury - it wasn’t your fault and many people would have been in the same situation (including me). You could also go to charities who might be able to help with financial planning - would you be entitled to any benefits (your chronic movement disorder sounds like it would impact on your ability to get part-time work)?

NooNooHead · 01/10/2019 00:00

Apileofballyhoo I think my DH earns around £2100 per month but I am not sure if that is after tax or not.🤔

OP posts:
NooNooHead · 01/10/2019 00:02

Not shown this thread to my DM yet... from experience, I know that she would agree with posters on here telling me the reasons not to go ahead, and that I was pontificating and thinking about it too much.

OP posts:
OkPedro · 01/10/2019 01:34

noonoohead
I commented earlier in your thread. I can honestly say recovering from an abortion will be less traumatic than having another baby and being in an even worse situation than you are now. I agree that people DO regret having children but it’s taboo to admit it..
I would sit down with your DH and actually see what your incomings and outgoings are. See where you can cut back and what is essential. Does it make financial sense for your dh to stay with his family 3 days a week? Get rid of the expensive car and have 1 decent car?
I really feel for you having been through so much Flowers
Think about yourself and your two dc. Your dh sounds very selfish
Best of luck ☘️

Caledoniahasmyheartforever · 01/10/2019 01:53

I wouldn’t show anyone the thread OP- ! OP is it possible your parents no longer see you as an adult?Having financial control over adult children, can return both the parent and the adult child to a position of the parent being in control and the adult child being a child again. In my experience it can go both ways, you can become close to your parents as adults, or the feeling of power allows (the parents) them free rein to tell you how much of a disappointment you are and where would you be without them. Do you feel like your DP are in control of you and your decisions and as a result, they no longer support your right to make your own choices? My dh has been there with his parents when he became epileptic in his twenties, they never respected him as an adult and he had dreadful self esteem from a childhood where he was never able to live up to their idea of how and who he should be. (In our situation my dh’s parents denied his epilepsy diagnosis, they were furious when he accepted it and went on medication, blaming me and saying I had made their son a leper.)My in-laws are narcissists (his counsellors helped him to see this), is there a possibility that your dp are too? Are they contributors to your low self esteem?

Do I remember reading that you were a journalist/ writer? I would look into whether you can pick up some writing work from home.

Am I right in thinking that your dh pays in less than half the wages to cover all the bills? So he then has the other half as spending money? Even with £140 (or is it £160 a month for food and board then £100 on the loan?) off this for his Mother and say £200 a month on petrol, that still leaves around £700 unaccounted for. I would actually ask to look at family finances together. There are apps that help you to see where your money is going (Yolt being one of them) they link all of your accounts and help you to find ways to better manage your money. If your dh doesn’t want to do this, then I would be very concerned as to why!

I would also make sure that you have had a recent benefits check. Depending on how your dh reacts if you choose to keep your baby, you would be better off financially as a single Mother. You would be entitled to tax credits/ esa or universal credit. You would be entitled to housing benefit to pay the interest on your mortgage and with maintenance payments from your dh, you would have more money to live on. You would also benefit from vouchers for milk/ fruit/ vitamins and other maternity grants to support you in getting what you need for your new baby.

How is your relationship OP? I can’t imagine it is in a very good place if your dh has threatened to leave you? I know it’s hard to hear that you would be better off financially without your dh. It’s unfair but at the same time it’s useful to know that should your dh follow through with his threat, that you would be in a better position financially. My dh would never threaten to leave me, he would see any unplanned pregnancy as half his responsibility and I have always told him that I could never have an abortion. So he knows that any resulting pregnancy will be our child and we will equally be responsible for them! Your dh had the opportunity to have a vasectomy, I think his refusal to go through with a vasectomy means he has no right to bully you into a procedure on your body that you do not want to have! You didn’t force the issue with his vasectomy, so he has no right to force you to go through an abortion!

If you are struggling to feed yourselves then you could ask your gp for a referral to a foodbank.

I would contact your gp and ask for counselling to help you decide if you will be able to continue with your pregnancy. You also need to ask your gp what impact, (if any) your current medications would have on your baby.

Please don’t feel awful about your situation, you are not to blame for the set of circumstances that led to you being where you are today. I am so sorry for the loss of your DB, I can’t imagine how painful that was for you to go through on top of all of your medical conditions.

Please do consider yourself when making your decision, yes consider your dc (I am sure both dc would love their new sibling- big families manage after all) and your parents and your finances, but do also consider how you would cope in the aftermath of an abortion. You are on your own with your two dc for the majority of the time, they need you and you need to be mentally well to look after them! So make sure you are at peace with your decision!

Apileofballyhoo · 01/10/2019 02:16

I know that she would agree with posters on here telling me the reasons not to go ahead do you mean she'd agree with the posters telling you to go ahead with termination?

OP, I can't tell you what to do. I just think it's your body and your choice, and you're the one that we'll have to live with your choice. Just like we all live with choices we make everyday. At the moment it's your DH's choice to have a very expensive car on a salary that doesn't support that type of car. It's your choice to get money from your parents rather than fight with your DH. It's your parent's choice to give you that money.

The whole thing is crazy. I thought it might open your DM's eyes to how utterly selfish and horrible your DH is if she read the thread. But I can see your reluctance for doing that if you think she will use it as a hammer to get her point across. It's just you have given the impression that she is loving and supportive. Maybe she thinks your DH is walking all over you (she'd be right) and she's impatient with you not sticking up for yourself, and also doesn't want you to have another baby with him because of him, not because of you.

Apileofballyhoo · 01/10/2019 02:25

2100 - 500 mortgage = 1600
1600 - 300 car = 1300
1300 - 70 sky package = 1230
1230 - 120 DH Mum rent = 1110
1110 - 100 DH Mum front door loan = 1000

That leaves him with £250 a week. I know you've said he transfers his share to cover bills - how much is that? The amount he transfers?

Mobile phones?
Electricity?
Heating?
Council tax?
Petrol?
Train?
Car insurance?

You really need to find out exactly how much he earns.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 01/10/2019 03:40

£2,100 after tax is a low London FT salary, so I would definitely check that. He has a lot of expenses in order to earn that, so even with a pay cut a local job might well work out better.

As for the fact that your parents are paying you £400ish each month when he pays £220 each month TOO his parents... I would not be happy with that at all.

donethinkin · 01/10/2019 03:58

What sort of car does he drive OP?

MsDogLady · 01/10/2019 06:35

Noo, you have my utmost admiration for moving forward despite your brain injury and TD. I first learned about tardive dyskinesia in college, and have since known several people who suffer from this difficult neurological condition.

As others have said, do not blame yourself for your injury. Most of us have bumped our heads, and, with the right force in the right spot, we could be in your shoes.

I am pulling for you to find a good job match where your gifts will be appreciated. As for benefits, did you submit your neurologist’s report?

I will be thinking of you as you process your thoughts and feelings. Flowers

NooNooHead · 01/10/2019 11:37

Thank you all for your kind replies again. You have all been so understanding and I really appreciate your advice.

My DH drives a BMW so it is quite a prestige car I guess.

Am just about to go out so will reply properly in a bit.Smile

OP posts:
Tunnockswafer · 01/10/2019 17:51

If a man made me terminate a wanted pregnancy to save money while he drove around in a fucking BMW I would set the bloody thing on fire, before I left him.

AmourVert · 01/10/2019 18:19

OP, I thought you said your husband was coming around to the idea of having another baby? Is that still so?

Apileofballyhoo · 01/10/2019 18:31

Hope you're ok, NooNoo.

Interestedwoman · 01/10/2019 18:58

As to running out of time, I think you have upto 24 weeks, and won't find it hard to get one, on grounds of your health.

My personal feeling is it seems wrong for you to feel forced to have an abortion by others, but I understand the circumstances are difficult.

BendyLikeBeckham · 01/10/2019 20:04

Jeez OP. The PP was right. Your parents aren't giving you money for food for you and DC. They are paying for your DHs "prestige car". I feel for you, I really do. This is nothing to do with affordability of another child. It's all to do with financial mismanagement, a selfish DH and possibly financial abuse. And this is not your doing either. You are running around trying to please everybody else except yourself. Where are your needs being met? Who is caring for and about you?

Please find a way out of this mess with DH and finances.

AmourVert · 01/10/2019 20:19

Very minor point, I would consider cancelling EuroDisney. Are you really going feel like going to a place centered around kids, full of young couples doing the whole cheesy Disney thing, after an abortion (if you have one). Sounds like a recipe for feeling absolutely horrendous!