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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

Accept that he won’t change?

19 replies

MarshmallowPot · 01/08/2021 11:40

My husband is a compulsive liar. He hides information from me, and goes out of his way to be deceptive. It’s been like this for years and started small and at the minute he seems he will lie about what he’s had for dinner.

Is this something you can accept? Can I have a life with him and just accept that he wants to live a secretive life?
He seems averse to any feeling of ‘control’ - I imagine due to his childhood, but he should be working on that. When I say control - he thinks that me expecting him to tell me certain things is controlling.

When he’s found out lying, he becomes nasty. Cold! He detaches completely and acts like a whole other person. He stares through me. He will be angry with me until I just drop it.
This goes on for days because he’s so unkind to me that I’ll be upset the following day and because I’m not my usual self he will continue to act like a child and be grumpy with the kids even.

I mean like 2 hours of him being horrible to me whilst I cry. He’s very unkind.

Today we’re on day 3/4 - I can’t even remember. I feel so down because he’s been so unkind to me but when we got up this morning I tried my best to be normal for the kids and he sat with a blanket over him with a stony face. Ignored the kids until he had to speak and when I said “is this what dads do?” He responded with “what do mums do, just have a go all the time?” Then told me he’s sick of it. He’s exhausted and can’t even just sit. It wasn’t that he was sitting. We have young children and I had one on my knee who was upset and another was almost hurting herself and he wouldn’t even move to deal with it. But he gaslights and then acts as though what I’m saying is he can’t be tired.

He’s obviously quite abusive and I know that. He tries to control the narrative and likes to be a victim.

When it’s not like this though it’s okay. He’s a good dad and he is usually very kind to me.

Part of me thinks I should just accept who he is and get on with it and it And not try to have conversations about his behaviour.

But to me that’s a shallow relationship and doesn’t seem sustainable or something that will make me happy.
Do I stick that out until the kids are older and finances are more secure.

To me it just seems simple. Don’t lie and be a nice person and we could have a really happy life. It frustrates me that he chooses this.

One person said to me once that men can change once you’ve had children and this seems to have happened but I find it hard to comprehend. He always lied a little but the nastiness started after I had my first child. Blatant disrespect and almost resentment towards me that only comes out if he gets called out on something.

It’s a horrible cycle of him being loving and kind and then horrible. Because I cling on to the nice parts and I crave that and I act quite desperate to get him to be nice to me. I am really quite ashamed of myself.

OP posts:
AmandaHoldensLips · 01/08/2021 11:43

He won't change. Do yourself a favour and leave this awful relationship. Life's too short to spend it with a compulsive liar.

RandomMess · 01/08/2021 11:45

It's straightforward abuse, and a good parent doesn't expose their DC to abuse nor be the one being abusive.

Shehasadiamondinthesky · 01/08/2021 11:46

I could never be with a compulsive liar OP because they cannot be trusted ever.
I was with one once and by the end of one year I was suicidal.
If that was me I'd cut and run now. You deserve a better life.

gobackanddoitproperly · 01/08/2021 11:47

I can’t think of many things unsexier than being a compulsive liar. It confuses me why they think people can’t see through them?

So that would have me out the door, even without the emotional battering he periodically puts you through, which is unforgivable on its own.

HerMammy · 01/08/2021 11:51

He’s a good dad
No he isn’t!
Every post about an arsehole of a man has this statement!
Good dads don’t abuse and lie to their child’s mother and have them live a miserable life.
Leave this vile person.

changesoul · 01/08/2021 11:51

Before I make any judgments can I ask you what kind of questions you aspects your DH to answer and he thinks you want to know everything what are those questions ? If u don't mind sharing....

HollowTalk · 01/08/2021 11:52

Oh god, you can't live like that. Let's be practical:

  • are you working?
  • is he working?
  • do you rent or own your home?
  • do you have any savings?
  • do you have any family support?

Google the Entitled To Calculator and enter your (new) details in there and see what you'd be entitled to if you two split up.

MarshmallowPot · 01/08/2021 12:07

@changesoul well if I ask him where he’s been on a night out, he doesn’t like that. But he has a history of being in suspicious places and lying about it. As in, stripper and dancer type places.
I have a very open approach and I tell him stuff. Say I went out with friends and bumped into an ex then I would tell him. Or someone tried to start a conversation on Instagram that was clearly not just friendly. I just prefer to tell him stuff.
I just expect the same back.
I think because of all the lies too - I do expect too much.
This particular lie was about a girl who added him on Instagram who was clearly an only fans type. I just said if that was me, I’d have told him and I would have declined the request.
He said I’m controlling, expecting him to tell me that.
Possibly it is. I know it’s too much. My self esteem is on the floor. He’s done some really shady things in the past and i try and forgive and move on and honestly I work really hard on my insecurities and I ALWAYS check in with myself before having a conversation - like how would I feel if it was the other way round and basically is it an acceptable thing to say.
But the fact that he still lies all the time makes it really hard to work on myself.

I just think in this situation, he didn’t need to be unkind. I speak very calmly with him and I always try and avoid any nastiness. I know I’m too much. I am. I’m really trying though. It’s been a long 5/6 years of him treating me like crap and my self esteem is really low and I know that comes out in my behaviours and I’m not always doing the right thing to have a healthy relationship.

But it’s hard when he continues to lie and hide stuff.

OP posts:
MarshmallowPot · 01/08/2021 12:08

@HollowTalk
I’ve worked out money. A number of times.
I’d be ok. I’d survive - just about. It’s just not really what I want for my kids.
I want to make this work.
All I need from him is the same. He’s done a lot of damage and the trust has gone an I think he needs to act a certain way to rebuild that. He refuses to do that. Or doesn’t want to. So I guess I have no choice.

OP posts:
DinosaurDiana · 01/08/2021 12:10

Don’t waste any more of your life on him. He will not change.
Contact a solicitor and make plans to end it, but get your ‘ducks in a row’ before you tell him.

HerMammy · 01/08/2021 12:10

I think you need to take the blinkers off, happy single mum is better than a downtrodden abused married mum.
Why on earth would you want your kids to grow up witness to this behaviour?
There’s nothing to make work, he lies, disrespects you, there’s no trust, just end it.

30degreesandmeltinghere · 01/08/2021 12:10

You aren't his therapist.
He is abusive.
You need to protect your dc
. Your dc see your relationship - would you want them to have a similar one?

Funnylittlefloozie · 01/08/2021 12:12

You can't change him, though. You can only change yourself and your situation. If you know you'd be ok without him, maybe do some thinking about whether you really want to carry on living like this. For me it wouldn't just be the lying, it would be the nasty childish behaviour afterwards as well. Are you getting ANYTHING out of this relationship?

RandomMess · 01/08/2021 12:14

He isn't going to change he is happy the way things are. He does what he wants and blanks you if you dare to complain.

Suzi888 · 01/08/2021 12:22

You have two choices, put up and shut or leave. He sounds vile and very childish, he won’t change. You’ll constantly be walking on egg shells trying not to set him off.

changesoul · 01/08/2021 13:54

@MarshmallowPot thank you for ur reply honestly I think he does not value u or relationship you have with him. U need to be strong and build ur confidence. I know you know what u should do but I will tell u Anyways to make it more clear. You need to leave him u have given him many chances & I'm sure he knows what u want in relationship to feel secure and have that peace of mind. If he feels on this basic things where he cannot or would not listen it's no point.

It's very normal in relationship to know what ur partner is doing or where he is so u are not wrong in that at all. He is just not bother clearly.

Get urself together look for the options to move out if u r not financially independent get job or do what needs to be done then staying in relationship where u r in constant stress & always being detective in relationship it's not healthy for you more then anything. Hope it helps and wish u get all the courage and happiness u deserve

Fireflygal · 01/08/2021 14:09

He is textbook abusive and really unlikely to change. In fact he is like to get worse as the cycles of niceness become shorter. You may have already noticed it.

I suggest you read books on abuse. Lundy and Patricia Evans "the verbally abusive relationship". It will help you understand that YOU can't fix this. It's likely to be the result of his childhood and if you leave you can break the cycle. I've seen children emulate their Dads by the time they reach secondary school as nurture (and to some degree nature) is a strong influence.

The lying is to keep the power tipped in his favour. He doesn't want a mutually beneficial relationship. This is what is hard to understand but also simple once you really get it. He may have grown up with conflict and abuse and to him this is how relationships occur. It is sad but by leaving you can show your children how healthy relationships are supposed to be.

These type never react well to loss of control, which leaving would be. My advice (wish I knew this beforehand) Don't assume he will be amicable so line up your finances, value the house, get a view of pensions etc before formalising the process.

Look up covert or vulnerable narcissism and see if he fits much of the criteria.

Colourmeclear · 01/08/2021 14:50

Why settle for less than you deserve?

Umberellatheweatha · 01/08/2021 14:51

He is an abuser and what you are describing is 'the cycle of abuse'.

Run for the hills. You can want to make things work all you like but he is a psychopath or similar so itll never work out. He wants to lie, he wants to control you. He likes it.

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