Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

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

How to leave a cheating partner?!?

66 replies

LivingInLeggingsStill · 31/01/2022 21:34

My partner has been cheating on me on me for four years, with the same woman. I've known about it, but I've never fully confronted him. He knows I've had suspicions but has always managed to turn it on me. I also love him and I'm desperately scared of being alone. He's about to take a job which will see him be away in the week and closer to her. He intimated today that he was struggling with our relationship and was struggling to see where I would fit in the future. I feel he is preparing me for finishing things when he moves. I'm distraught. I begged him not to give up on is, get said he wouldn't but he was finding it hard. How do I break out of this and recover. I'm utterly devastated.

OP posts:
SunflowerTed · 01/02/2022 08:02

There is one thing they could make a HUGE difference and help you in the future. Take back control AND DUMP HIM! He has ALL the control. Believe me when he has buggered off into the sunset with his new woman you’ll be wishing you had taken control and got back some dignity. You’re not a piece of rubbish who deserves to condone a 4 year affair!! You’re better than this. He has chosen her. Sit him down and tell him to go NOW! You will not regret it!

SunflowerTed · 01/02/2022 08:04

Ps And do it today! The first day of your new life!!!!!

layladomino · 01/02/2022 08:30

Making the leap might seem scary but better things await you once you rid yourself of this man who is treating you cruelly and without respect.

You know it's going to end one way or the other. So make that a little easier and take the control back, and you end it.

Same outcome, except in this scenario you've taken some control, and hopefully with it some self confidence and dignity. And maybe shaken him a bit (he clearly thinks he can treat you like rubbish as much and as long as he likes and will then discard you when he no longer has a use for you).

Show him you won't be treated like that anymore. You'll feel much better for it.

Jurassicparkinajug · 01/02/2022 08:49

If you're in the worse place now then you're clearly not happy with how things are. This is no way to live always being in fear of him leaving. This won't go away even if he gives it another go, the fear snd threat of him keeping won't go away. Are you staying because you really want this or are you staying because you're afraid if being lonely? I think deep down your gut instinct is telling you it's not right.

It'll be worse if he leaves you because you'll be feeling rejected. If you leave him, it'll give you strength. Start planning what it would be like on your own. Consider where you would live. Contact friends and suggest going out or away for the weekend. Reconnect with people you might have lost touch with. Start building up your social life. Also think about getting a pet. They are so amazing at stopping us feeling lonely. Take control and take your happiness back. You deserve it. You can do this OP 💪.

TalkingFeminism · 01/02/2022 09:31

You've asked, how do I leave a cheating partner?

First, do not beat yourself up because it's taking time. You may not be ready, yet, to end it. It can take some people a long time to be ready, but I think that once they are ready, they often move on very quickly, because they've already done all the thinking and processing. It's like they've been in the forest and suddenly emerge into the light.

Second, to help yourself get there, I'd suggest being brutally realistic about the relationship. You might benefit from keeping a note of his behaviours and your feelings - when he lies to you, any fights or cross words, when you feel anxious about where he is, etc. You need to see the relationship for what it's actually like, not what you had hoped for in your mind.

I wonder, too, whether you might benefit from building up your confidence by focusing on areas of your life that don't involve him. Friends, hobbies, exercise, perhaps planning for a new job? Could you take a holiday, to get a literal break from him? Someone suggested a pet, another great suggestion if you're able to take on the responsibilities.

Do you have a confidante, apart from your therapists? You need some people In Real Life to help keep your head and heart in reality, and to support you. Isolation is not your friend.

If your resolve always crumbles when you're around him, break up via text message.

Last few thoughts - you sound like you're driving the car with your eyes firmly planted in the rear-view mirror. You express a lot of regret about your past decisions. But you can't change those decisions, and staying in your current relationship because of what you sacrificed sounds like an example of the "sunk cost fallacy". What you can control is the choices you make today. So what will you do today, @LivingInLeggingsStill , to move yourself towards the life you want? You don't need to dump him! But think of one thing, however small. And do it.

HalfGoddessHalfHell · 01/02/2022 10:11

“One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice --
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
"Mend my life!"
each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life you could save.”

Mary Oliver - The Journey.

OP please, please, find your inner strength and anger. You are worth and deserve so much more than this cheating a*se hole.

Take back control of YOUR LIFE - have a few days off to get your ducks lined up, then pack all his belongings and dump them at his work. Ignore him (block if it helps to get some head space) You do not have to passively accept what he is doing to you. Lean on family, friends, keep busy, fill your time with positive moves towards creating independence from this cruel, disrespectful and callous man.

Hold your head high and move on.

MermaidEyes · 01/02/2022 10:12

You need to finish it today and then you need to have a very, very long period of being on your own and discovering who you are as a person. You do not need a man to validate your existence. You can be single and perfectly content with that.

TheFoundation · 01/02/2022 12:34

Why are you so scared of being alone? What do you think it will be like? Why do you think it will feel so bad?

LivingInLeggingsStill · 01/02/2022 17:24

@TheFoundation I guess I have become accustomed to the contact and the companionship. We are great when we are together and rarely fight. I know I still have to finish it though. We share calls/messages all through the day, we work together. I'm losing a friend and work colleague and the fear of the loneliness is crippling me. I just know it can't continue. There is no future.

OP posts:
TheFoundation · 01/02/2022 17:31

Being in a relationship with someone you know is disrespectful to you is lonelier than being by yourself and loving yourself to pieces.

NowEvenBetter · 01/02/2022 17:58

There’s nothing lonelier than the mess you’re choosing at the minute. Stop begging this shagger, focus on therapy and your kid, your shitty boyfriend isn’t worth a second thought, you’re sacrificing time you’ll never get back, on some worthless bloke.

LivingInLeggingsStill · 01/02/2022 17:58

@TheFoundation you're right, I also am fearful of how I will find a way to love and accept myself. It's clear my confidence and esteem are through the floor. I already feel broken and I worry that being alone will be even harder. That being said, I know I have to do it.

OP posts:
NowEvenBetter · 01/02/2022 18:06

Did you cheat on your ex husband with your boss? (So you’d have known your boss can’t be trusted, from the outset)
Is it your boss’s house you live in? Make plans for securing somewhere to live and maybe a different job.

TheFoundation · 01/02/2022 18:11

I got told for years that I needed to sort out my self esteem, but it's not something you can just 'do', like suddenly saying 'I've changed my mind! I love myself now, and let that be an end to it!'

I recognised that I was responsible for myself, and had to look after me in the same way I would look after a child I was responsible for. So, if I was unhappy, it wasn't doing what I'd always done ('Oh, stop whinging, it's not that bad, you're always so miserable, what's wrong with you?' - which you'd never, ever say to a child you were looking after), but switching to something different ('You're unhappy, darling? What's the matter? You don't like that man? Well, lets go somewhere else then, somewhere where you feel better, shall we?')

It's a simple change in mindset; actually caring about your own feelings, not being rude or dismissive of yourself, supporting yourself. Listen to how you talk to yourself, listen to how you care for yourself.

'Self respect' is literally 'respecting your own feelings', so if something makes you feel shitty, then you respect that, and get away from the source of the shitty feeling, without doubting it ('Am I right to feel shitty, here?'), without dismissing it ('I don;t like this, but never mind, it'll sort itself out eventually...'), without criticising it ('God, why do I always feel shitty? I'm so pathetic.')

Somebody's got to look after you, and, as an adult, it has to be you. You have to step up. You need rescuing, and the rescuer needs to be you.

me4real · 01/02/2022 19:39

You'll feel much better if you dump him than if he dumps you. I'd do it with as little conversation as possible, so he has less opportunities to be hurtful.

You'll be lonely for a while but then you'll be ok. xx

FirstTimeMum6666 · 01/02/2022 21:28

He's been cheating for four years and your begging him not to give up?!?!?! MORE FOOL YOU!
No sympathy for such door mats. Get a grip he doesn't love you! Other wise he wouldn't of done it in the first place.

NeedingToSleep · 01/02/2022 21:38

I have the distinct feeling my OH is going to end our marriage at some point very soon.

I feel now and will be devastated if they do. Having said this, I'm thinking about doing it first, as I can't stand this uncertainty. I'm going to spiral even more if this goes on much longer.

I feel for you OP, it's beyond shit.

LivingInLeggingsStill · 02/02/2022 18:08

@FirstTimeMum6666 whilst I appreciate your honesty, it was a pretty shitty response. Let's hope you never hot rock bottom in your life and ask for advice and somebody chooses to tell you they have no sympathy.

OP posts:
FirstTimeMum6666 · 02/02/2022 18:40

@LivingInLeggingsStill sometimes you have to be harsh to get it through to people. I'm not being horrible I think you deserve 1000x better than a cheating jerk! If you don't get rid of him you will never find someone that will actually love you for you and dote on you. That's what you deserve. For your own sake move on!

Catlover1970 · 02/02/2022 18:41

@NeedingToSleep

I have the distinct feeling my OH is going to end our marriage at some point very soon.

I feel now and will be devastated if they do. Having said this, I'm thinking about doing it first, as I can't stand this uncertainty. I'm going to spiral even more if this goes on much longer.

I feel for you OP, it's beyond shit.

You do it first. Take control x
Catlover1970 · 02/02/2022 18:41

[quote FirstTimeMum6666]@LivingInLeggingsStill sometimes you have to be harsh to get it through to people. I'm not being horrible I think you deserve 1000x better than a cheating jerk! If you don't get rid of him you will never find someone that will actually love you for you and dote on you. That's what you deserve. For your own sake move on![/quote]
Very harsh but very true

PerseverancePays · 02/02/2022 20:18

What do you think is going to happen when you are on your own? You'll be there and you can start learning to be nice to yourself. Being on your own is not all that bad. It's ok actually, quite pleasant. There's space for you to be you. Give yourself the gift of exploring who that is, you will be pleasantly surprised if you give yourself the chance.

LivingInLeggingsStill · 02/02/2022 21:41

@PerseverancePays I think I'm just afraid of the loneliness. I just don't like myself and what I've become. I don't know who I am anymore, I don't know what I want and it's scary to walk away and start from nothing, that being said, I know I have to.

OP posts:
LivingInLeggingsStill · 02/02/2022 21:50

@GreyCarpet you're right, I have and it's got me nowhere. I don't even know who I am anymore. I don't like who I have become. I need to fully commit to finding some inner peace.

OP posts:
LivingInLeggingsStill · 02/02/2022 21:59

@HalfGoddessHalfHell I love that. I need to print it off and put a copy on my wall. Let it serve as a reminder that I can find a way back from this shitshow. Thank you.

OP posts: