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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

DP Arrested - Trigger warning DV

827 replies

WeyAyeMan · 31/12/2021 22:19

My dp well ex dp has been arrested and now charged with 5 counts of assault and 1 count of false imprisonment against me on Christmas Day, now remanded in custody till court on Tuesday. I'm a wreck and have severe trauma bonding to him. I'm missing him so much.

I'm around 7 weeks pregnant, home alone with our 8 month old baby and shaking in shock. Has anybody been through similar? The fear of unknown is making it worse.

OP posts:
WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 12:32

Honestly I think any worse and I would have been killed. I'm just feeling incredibly weak, like I can't go on. It is the what ifs and why's. I wish he would get out of my head but need to remember it's actually only been five days or so since he was arrested.

OP posts:
Moretodo · 03/01/2022 13:31

Have you heard of Stockholm syndrome? Look it up.
Understand what you are going through, there is a physical side to it because of the hormones that are released from being in this situation.
Cortisol, adrenalin, these are all addictive even though the situation is unpleasant.
You are in some kind of withdrawal.
This is a crude way of explaining as I am no expert.

You are feeling unsafe, but in reality are the safest you have been for a while. Life with the abuser gets all our signals messed up.
You think it's safer to have him there, onside, because you have been entrained and may have internalised him.

Time, therapy, research, and self care and love will weaken this.

It's not an overnight matter, like you say, it's just five days.

Sending love to you.
Affirm "i am starting to take care of myself and my daughter"
"I am starting to make better decisions for us"
"I am learning to keep us safe"

billy1966 · 03/01/2022 13:33

OP,

Another person wanting to applaud how brave you are.

I have a few people in my life who lost their mothers when they were young, to illness.

The grief, loneliness and sadness has never left them.
It rests deep within them.

It has marked their WHOLE lives.

He could have taken your life.
He could have left your child motherless and at the mercy of services.

Never having the chance of knowing her birth mother, who adores her.

You are getting wonderful advice on here.

But if you can, write down how you would feel if your child was to have to grow up without knowing you, and your huge love of her.

When you feel yourself thinking about him, feeling sorry for him, try and move your thoughts to that gorgeous 8 month old, that desperately deserves the love of her mum in her life.

She is the only person you owe loyalty to.

Certainly not a father who clearly doesn't care about her.

No man who loved their child would raise a hand to it's mother, and nearly take her life.

Keep posting, you sound like a wonderful young woman who will get through this and thrive.
Flowers

WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 14:15

Oh god the advice and support here is really overwhelming thank you so much. I keep coming back to this thread every time I have a wobble and it helps so much

OP posts:
Queenie6655 · 03/01/2022 14:17

@billy1966 very well said

Those were my thoughts when my abuser tried to kill me

billy1966 · 03/01/2022 14:31

[quote Queenie6655]@billy1966 very well said

Those were my thoughts when my abuser tried to kill me [/quote]
I find news reports of fathers killing mothers so upsetting.

One parent dead, the other in jail.

The children left utterly traumatised.

My nephew is a primary principal and he told me some years ago of a very MC family where the father killed the mother out of the blue.
They weren't on SS radar at all.
One of the children were in his class and he really went out of his way pastorally to support this absolutely devastated 9 year old.
The children had great family to take them in, so they were very lucky, but the trauma of the children haunted my nephew.

Awful enough to lose a parent through illness, but through DV is a whole new level of grief, confusion and trauma that I doubt ever leaves a child.

I'm so glad you too were brave @Queenie6655 and are safe.Flowers

IsMaeOnTheAsmae · 03/01/2022 14:33

One of the hardest parts will be the "what ifs"
What if I stopped arguing
What if I stayed silent
What if I didn't react

Its been 4 years since I left an abusive relationship and I still get the what ifs.

Well done OP, I think it's even harder to leave when you have very small children.

I left the abuse when my babies were 2.6 And 8 months old. Not a single day goes by where im not grateful for giving them the best life possible

He was found guilty in court and they gave him a court order not to contact or communicate with me or the children unless authorised by the courts or social services. Thag court order saved me years of harassment from him

Honestly, well done. It's a lot easier to stay put and shut about it than it is to admit whats been going on

Queenie6655 · 03/01/2022 14:41

Absolutely @billy1966

To see my abuser you would think he is the finest gent on earth in a well paid respected job

I'm hoping we get justice soon

So so sad knowing so many innocent women and kids go through this daily

WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 16:09

@Queenie6655

Absolutely *@billy1966*

To see my abuser you would think he is the finest gent on earth in a well paid respected job

I'm hoping we get justice soon

So so sad knowing so many innocent women and kids go through this daily

Are you still going through this? You seem so incredibly strong. I'm a nervous shaking broken mess missing him so much
OP posts:
Suzanne999 · 03/01/2022 17:03

You might be a broken shaking wreck now but tomorrow you’ll shake just a little less, and the next day less.
Imagine if he’d broken both your legs —— would they heal overnight? No, you’d go through a numb period, then they hurt even in plaster, then they’d start to heal until the casts came off and they’d turned to jelly legs and you’d go through some pain building those muscles up again.
This is the same —— he’s damaged your body and soul and you have to process what’s happened, take in new info from the police and rebuild your physical and mental strength. It’ll take time but you’ll get there.

Accept all the help you’re offered, look at your feelings for him then throw them away. You and your baby matter, not him.
Look after yourself, I’m so glad you weren’t a Christmas news story of husband killed wife. I’ve known DV and your story made my blood run cold.

Queenie6655 · 03/01/2022 17:29

@WeyAyeMan

Yes sadly

So cps charged the bastard with many offences

Went to court

One of the offences he was not charged for and the case was adjourned for some time

He stood up in court with a suit on making me out to be a lier

Courts see right through them

I swore I would never get him into trouble
Like no chance

Then around 6 months after he tried to kil me I went to the police and told them everything

Got some great advice here too

Many great people are here to help you are never alone

So impressed by the many lovely police officers too xxxxxxxxxxxx

countbackfromten · 03/01/2022 17:59

@WeyAyeMan you aren’t weak. This is going to take time to process and sounds like a cliche but you have to take it step by step. My ex didn’t harm me in anyway as serious a form as yours has but it took me a while to be able to accept what happened and this is still so raw.

Step by step. Step by step to a brighter future for you and your children.

WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 20:36

I'm starting to feel a bit angry and stronger tonight. If o catch myself feeling sad I remind myself that he could of killed me. Managed to take his photos off the walls !

OP posts:
WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 20:58

[quote Queenie6655]@WeyAyeMan

Yes sadly

So cps charged the bastard with many offences

Went to court

One of the offences he was not charged for and the case was adjourned for some time

He stood up in court with a suit on making me out to be a lier

Courts see right through them

I swore I would never get him into trouble
Like no chance

Then around 6 months after he tried to kil me I went to the police and told them everything

Got some great advice here too

Many great people are here to help you are never alone

So impressed by the many lovely police officers too xxxxxxxxxxxx[/quote]
Wow you're such a strong, inspirational woman.

Thank you for sharing your story ❤️

OP posts:
mathanxiety · 03/01/2022 22:38

When he hit me we had been arguing, he was saying to me I'm making him angry and I kept arguing. I know no one deserves to be attacked like that arguing or not, but I can't get it out of my head if I had of just stopped arguing this wouldn't of happened.

That is why this is all so hard for you.

Blaming you for the abuse he chose is part of the abuse.

It is incredibly hard to shake the accusation off, to see it for what it is, because when you are a grown up you hate to feel that you are living completely at the mercy of someone else, to feel that your choice of this man was a horrible mistake. You want to feel that there really is a cause and effect to the experience you are living through because the alternative to living in a world where you can control what happens in your own home is unthinkable. You really need that illusion that you are somewhat in control. The alternative narrative is that you are living with someone who is evil and completely out of your control.

The rational mind wants an explanation for whatever it encounters that is completely irrational and out of control because people who are completely irrational and out of your control are terrifying and you have to get out of their orbit. At the same time, because you are living with someone who goes berserk from time to time, you are frightened, you believe your options are limited, and somewhere deep down you believe that love and rationality will win in the end. This is toxic optimism blinding you to reality. It's a self protective feature that has limited usefulness.

The explanation that it was your fault is a straw that you grasp at. The straw is attractive because it would be simply too terrifying to accept that the person you live with is just plain evil and has no interest at all in creating a mutually loving, respectful relationship with you, and wants to destroy you in every way possible instead.

The evil person you were with is an emotionally stunted person who is unfortunately physically strong enough to kill you.

'You made me do it' is what kids say when they are just old enough to feel ashamed of hitting someone but not mature enough to take responsibility for what they choose to do, and they are still deep in the narcissistic phase children go through. The criminal you were living with hasn't developed beyond this stage. He can't accept at all that he has any fault, that anyone else has a point, that he has done wrong. His glorious self image has to be protected at all costs, and thus anything he does that is wrong or hurtful or selfish or violent is somebody else's fault.

He is champing at the bit in his cell right now, telling anyone who will listen what a fucking bitch you are, how patient he has been with you over the time he has known you, and how richly you deserved every single blow he inflicted on you. Hopefully, he will find that the law thinks differently.

You need help getting a non-molestation order and an occupation order. Please call Women's Aid for that help.

Talk to the police about helping you get those orders.

WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 23:08

@mathanxiety

When he hit me we had been arguing, he was saying to me I'm making him angry and I kept arguing. I know no one deserves to be attacked like that arguing or not, but I can't get it out of my head if I had of just stopped arguing this wouldn't of happened.

That is why this is all so hard for you.

Blaming you for the abuse he chose is part of the abuse.

It is incredibly hard to shake the accusation off, to see it for what it is, because when you are a grown up you hate to feel that you are living completely at the mercy of someone else, to feel that your choice of this man was a horrible mistake. You want to feel that there really is a cause and effect to the experience you are living through because the alternative to living in a world where you can control what happens in your own home is unthinkable. You really need that illusion that you are somewhat in control. The alternative narrative is that you are living with someone who is evil and completely out of your control.

The rational mind wants an explanation for whatever it encounters that is completely irrational and out of control because people who are completely irrational and out of your control are terrifying and you have to get out of their orbit. At the same time, because you are living with someone who goes berserk from time to time, you are frightened, you believe your options are limited, and somewhere deep down you believe that love and rationality will win in the end. This is toxic optimism blinding you to reality. It's a self protective feature that has limited usefulness.

The explanation that it was your fault is a straw that you grasp at. The straw is attractive because it would be simply too terrifying to accept that the person you live with is just plain evil and has no interest at all in creating a mutually loving, respectful relationship with you, and wants to destroy you in every way possible instead.

The evil person you were with is an emotionally stunted person who is unfortunately physically strong enough to kill you.

'You made me do it' is what kids say when they are just old enough to feel ashamed of hitting someone but not mature enough to take responsibility for what they choose to do, and they are still deep in the narcissistic phase children go through. The criminal you were living with hasn't developed beyond this stage. He can't accept at all that he has any fault, that anyone else has a point, that he has done wrong. His glorious self image has to be protected at all costs, and thus anything he does that is wrong or hurtful or selfish or violent is somebody else's fault.

He is champing at the bit in his cell right now, telling anyone who will listen what a fucking bitch you are, how patient he has been with you over the time he has known you, and how richly you deserved every single blow he inflicted on you. Hopefully, he will find that the law thinks differently.

You need help getting a non-molestation order and an occupation order. Please call Women's Aid for that help.

Talk to the police about helping you get those orders.

Wow thank you for all the time you put into replying to me. I genuinely appreciate it and what you are saying to me really is sinking in.

I'll be speaking to the safety planning team and women in need tomorrow as well as meeting with a social worker. I fully intend to follow every step of their advice and accept any support. I'm aware I need some very intense therapy but I feel like very very slowly these rose tinted glasses are slipping away.

I was just lying in bed and he came over my mind again, and then I remembered the feeling of when the first blow hit, the absolute devastation of when the reality of what was happening hit me. I'm lucky to be lying here with my daughter right now and I pray to god tomorrow at the scan for the one inside everything is ok. No thanks to him.

Again, thank you so much for helping frame my perspective I'm so so grateful you have shared your knowledge

OP posts:
WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 23:11

@Suzanne999

You might be a broken shaking wreck now but tomorrow you’ll shake just a little less, and the next day less. Imagine if he’d broken both your legs —— would they heal overnight? No, you’d go through a numb period, then they hurt even in plaster, then they’d start to heal until the casts came off and they’d turned to jelly legs and you’d go through some pain building those muscles up again. This is the same —— he’s damaged your body and soul and you have to process what’s happened, take in new info from the police and rebuild your physical and mental strength. It’ll take time but you’ll get there.

Accept all the help you’re offered, look at your feelings for him then throw them away. You and your baby matter, not him.
Look after yourself, I’m so glad you weren’t a Christmas news story of husband killed wife. I’ve known DV and your story made my blood run cold.

Thank you the way you have worded it has really helped me to see I'm going through the process sort of and not weak as I think. I don't want to be a statistic im a good person who deserves to be loved and respected properly
OP posts:
WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 23:14

@billy1966

OP,

Another person wanting to applaud how brave you are.

I have a few people in my life who lost their mothers when they were young, to illness.

The grief, loneliness and sadness has never left them.
It rests deep within them.

It has marked their WHOLE lives.

He could have taken your life.
He could have left your child motherless and at the mercy of services.

Never having the chance of knowing her birth mother, who adores her.

You are getting wonderful advice on here.

But if you can, write down how you would feel if your child was to have to grow up without knowing you, and your huge love of her.

When you feel yourself thinking about him, feeling sorry for him, try and move your thoughts to that gorgeous 8 month old, that desperately deserves the love of her mum in her life.

She is the only person you owe loyalty to.

Certainly not a father who clearly doesn't care about her.

No man who loved their child would raise a hand to it's mother, and nearly take her life.

Keep posting, you sound like a wonderful young woman who will get through this and thrive.
Flowers

Thank you so much for this advice I've been doing that and it's allowing me to think more clearly. I don't ever want to think of my little baby not remembering me, and he could have easily made that happen, he doesn't deserve me to feel sorry for him
OP posts:
SleevedOff · 03/01/2022 23:22

You are so brave x

WeyAyeMan · 03/01/2022 23:26

@SleevedOff

You are so brave x
Thank you. I don't feel it, but taking each hour as it comes helps. This thread has been an absolute lifeline for me especially with the services I'm kind of relying on being closed over the bank holiday
OP posts:
Treesinthewind · 03/01/2022 23:36

You have been so incredibly brave and strong for your babies. My son's father had no one but me in this country, and I know how that can complicate an abusive relationship. I think I fooled myself that he couldn't be controlling me because I was the one with a life here: citizenship, a job, family. But it meant our relationship was very very co-dependent. If you've felt responsible for caring for him at all, it will be really difficult to stop doing that, but it sounds like your protective mother bear instinct has kicked in and you're putting them and yourself first. Make sure you're getting enough to eat and enough sleep. Lots of hot, sweet tea for the shock.

Queenie6655 · 03/01/2022 23:54

@WeyAyeMan

I'm starting to feel a bit angry and stronger tonight. If o catch myself feeling sad I remind myself that he could of killed me. Managed to take his photos off the walls !
You are incredibly brave

I was a total wreck in the days after

Minimising
Feeling so sad for him

Utter madness

I went to a solicitor she gave me the best advice out of everyone - didn't listen to her
Few weeks later he was back and trying to insist we have another child (2 babies under one year of age )

So it took a long time ti build the courage to tell anyone just how bad he was

mathanxiety · 04/01/2022 00:00

I'm lucky to be lying here with my daughter right now and I pray to god tomorrow at the scan for the one inside everything is ok. No thanks to him.

Your little daughter is lucky you're not on life support, or lying in the morgue. You may feel weak, but you are everything to your little one, and you are still there, loving her and taking care of her despite what you are going through. Give yourself a reassuring hug and stay strong Flowers

When the time comes, think of therapy as healing, not fixing. You are not the one who is fundamentally flawed here. Think of therapy as a series of doors opening to you, leading to a better future.

There are so many women here wishing you every good thing.

WeyAyeMan · 04/01/2022 00:09

@Treesinthewind

You have been so incredibly brave and strong for your babies. My son's father had no one but me in this country, and I know how that can complicate an abusive relationship. I think I fooled myself that he couldn't be controlling me because I was the one with a life here: citizenship, a job, family. But it meant our relationship was very very co-dependent. If you've felt responsible for caring for him at all, it will be really difficult to stop doing that, but it sounds like your protective mother bear instinct has kicked in and you're putting them and yourself first. Make sure you're getting enough to eat and enough sleep. Lots of hot, sweet tea for the shock.
Yes that's exactly it, I did absolutely everything for him so much so I was asking my police support officer if he's needing clothes, he's are etc.

Nah he can piss right off, my children are who I need to be caring like that for, not him!

OP posts:
WeyAyeMan · 04/01/2022 00:13

@Queenie6655 you are so strong for eventually having the courage to speak out, it's absolutely terrifying.

@mathanxiety thank you again for your response to me, I know I'm still awake as I'm finding it hard to switch off but reading the replies are putting my mind at ease,

Is there any rough ideas on how much time he could get for the offences charged for? Or is it completely random

OP posts:
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