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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

Top places exH sulked - can anyone top these! (semi-lighthearted!)

675 replies

heliosoftroy · 09/05/2024 12:00

Currently going through a divorce from my super sulker ex, and often find myself thinking, with incredulity, at some of the sulks soon-to-be-exH pulled in the most inopportune moments! Top sulk moments -

  • On a beach in the Florida Keys. Also a beach in Miami (separate occasion)
  • Sitting in the 3rd row of the stalls at Hamilton on Broadway
  • At my birthday dinner out in a fancy restaurant
  • All the way on a 3hr train journey to a romantic weekend away I planned for his birthday
  • The first Christmas I went to stay with his family
  • At Peppa Pig World in the very long queue for a ride
  • DC's birthday party
  • On a cruise in the middle of the Caribbean
  • Looking round wedding venues...

I'm sure there are more, but anyone got any crackers from sulking partners to make me feel better?!

OP posts:
Epidote · 13/05/2024 19:54

JFDIYOLO · 13/05/2024 17:01

Why is this happening though?
Is it really because boys aren't brought up able to use their words?
If the feel offended, hurt, exasperated, disappointed, angry, whatever it may be - why don't they just say so?

Which words applies in all these cases? "I am here, look at me", "I'm the boss do as I told". These examples are not example of someone who doesn't know who to express their feeling or they don't find the words. These examples are of people who doesn't matter what is going on they have to be always right and the main star of the scene.
The sulking is to punishing us with their indifference. To make us think we have done something to upset them.
They are like the kids that threat you with stop breathing. Pure manipulation. And because normal people can't believe an adult can be that childish the manipulation usually works well.

justasking111 · 13/05/2024 19:57

Cathbrownlow · 13/05/2024 19:33

@justasking111 Do you intend staying with your 'D'H?

Yes 😂

Nutsabouttopic · 13/05/2024 20:01

Southern68 · 09/05/2024 19:05

My 2nd ex husband threw a massive sulk because while I was waiting to be taken to hospital with a suspected stomach ulcer and in a lot of pain, he wanted to play some music on his keyboard for the paramedics and they said no, they were busy concentrating on me.
Also on the anniversaries of my parents and brothers deaths I tend to be a bit quieter, he used to sulk and say I was boring and bringing his mood down. He was a complete emotional vacuum.

Edited

I am sorry @Southern68 but I laughed out loud at this. The paramedics must have been wondering who the patient was, you or bring him to psychiatric ward. What was he going to play for them.

asbestosmouth24 · 13/05/2024 20:02

Another one here who sulked all the way on a day trip to London it ruined the day.
Also at the top of the CN tower in Canada. had a face like a slapped arse and totally ruined an experience.

Endoftheroad12345 · 13/05/2024 20:09

@justasking111 why on earth did you not say yes we will come and leave him to it? He sounds vile

Lolalady · 13/05/2024 20:13

My late OH was a massive sulker. Birthdays, Christmases, holidays - all marred by his moody behaviour. One Christmas instead of sitting down to dinner he went outside and washed the car! On a cruise around the Caribbean he sulked because we’d asked for sandwiches to be bought to our cabin and there were no cheese and tomato! (He was a very fussy eater). He then sulked because I’d had something to eat and he hadn’t.

Probably why when he died I was a very Merry Widow!

Trishthedish · 13/05/2024 20:14

sprigatito · 09/05/2024 13:04

Just leaving this here

I loved the Dot cartoons.

asbestosmouth24 · 13/05/2024 20:15

HoobleDooble · 09/05/2024 13:21

Not a sulk, more of a major meltdown ... On a date in the 80s, the cassette player in his car (orange Fiesta) had stopped working and, as we walked through a local park on the way to have lunch at a nearby pub, he kicked off into a proper tantrum about it, went to kick a nearby stone on the path and his grey slip-on came off and went into the duck pond. I just sat and absolutely wept with laughter as he carried on shouting and swearing at the ducks as if they'd caused it in some way. He then drove me home, still hungry, in silence and one wet shoe, pulled up outside the house and growled "So, do you want to see me again?" ... it was a no. Oh I'm so tempted to look him up on social media now to see how his life has unfolded.

🤣brilliant! this made me laugh out loud. you definitely need to look him up, hes probably turned into a Victor Meldrew type.

FanofBusted · 13/05/2024 20:16

My partner used to be a sulker. I let him stomp off after shouting at me in a nightclub with my friends. He then came stomping back to ask why I didn’t follow him. I told him I’d never chase him. He could run all he liked. He’s not a sulker now.

fast forward 10 years and his 15 yr old son is the sulker. He has ruined many events by sulking. The epic ones include:

  • every birthday of my son
  • every Christmas, especially if my son has a different present than him.
  • in Florida- everyday. Including at Disney world, gator land, house of blues
  • booking a 2 week holiday to Crete as 2 weeks is too long and the locals will be weird.
  • every time the attention isn’t on him
TheFirmBiscuit · 13/05/2024 20:17

This reply has been deleted

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

In his favour Boris loved it so there is that !

Bear0511 · 13/05/2024 20:19

justasking111 · 13/05/2024 19:17

One epic sulk recently that has bitten him on the arse. He was mid sulk when son and wife called in all excited because they'd booked a gorgeous villa in a place husband loves. They quite clearly asked if we would like to join them, husband wallowing ignored them. My son another day asked again, was ignored. I was really sad. Wanted to holiday with the grandkids a lot.

A month later they visited and DIL was talking about the holiday, saying her mum and partner were going with them. They left.

Cue a meltdown, why had they asked them instead of us. I explained that they had, twice in fact. Mutterings that he hadn't heard those conversations, you were sitting in the bloody chair in the sitting room on both occasions, blanked them on both occasions.

He's had the odd moan since about being robbed of a good holiday 🙄

Go on a lovely holiday with your DS, DIL and GC and leave the miserable bastard at home.

ICanFeelItComingInTheAirTonight · 13/05/2024 20:21

@Johnthesensible are you the OPs exH?

TheTruthWillSetYouFreeMaybe · 13/05/2024 20:21

Any time a family event (my family) clashed with him going out for a drink - in fact any time anything I wanted to do clashed with him going out for a drink. When I was pregnant (elderly primip and had been told due to health issues I would probably never conceive) felt ill and had ‘all day’ morning sickness for almost 9 months so didn’t cook much which got him sulky - frequently told me that Lisa up the pub was due same time as me and her morning sickness ended at 3 months (well, bully for f*ing Lisa !) . When I lost the receipt for a DVD that had a scratch on it - sulked for ages which I found out was because I didn’t say sorry for losing the receipt.

LadyHavelockVetinari · 13/05/2024 20:24

H sulked all the way through a Japanese baseball game in Tokyo because I was "clapping too loudly". Like a complete fucking idiot I then tried to clap quietly. He sulked the rest of the evening because "I was clapping performatively quietly and I knew it".

kateluvscats · 13/05/2024 20:27

Southern68 · 09/05/2024 19:05

My 2nd ex husband threw a massive sulk because while I was waiting to be taken to hospital with a suspected stomach ulcer and in a lot of pain, he wanted to play some music on his keyboard for the paramedics and they said no, they were busy concentrating on me.
Also on the anniversaries of my parents and brothers deaths I tend to be a bit quieter, he used to sulk and say I was boring and bringing his mood down. He was a complete emotional vacuum.

Edited

Hilarious but cringe worthy, what a tosser.

Rottweilermummy · 13/05/2024 20:33

abbey44 · 09/05/2024 12:57

My ex was a world-class sulker. His crowning glory was on a special holiday (my 40th) when we flew to the Caribbean for a stay on a private island - we were flying to Barbados on Concorde, then on to the island by small plane (oh, those were the days…😁). It was a true once-in-a-lifetime trip, and I was absolutely beside myself with the thrill of everything. My ex, hmm, not so much. He sulked in the Concorde lounge at Heathrow, he sulked on the flight, he sulked on the private island…. On the morning of my birthday he prodded my (size 10) stomach and said “you ever considered surgery on that?” before leaving me on my own for the day to go scuba diving. And then sulked over dinner because I wasn’t as happy as I should have been. I look back now and can’t believe it took another five years before I finally left him.

(He still sulks for England, twenty five years later..)

Omg think this tops all other sulkers , Sulking in concorde lounge?? and then doing all that to you on your birthday! , bet you are so glad you got shot of him

zaxxon · 13/05/2024 20:38

OnePeachCrow · 13/05/2024 15:22

DH sulked on a break I won for us in a lovely hotel in the Forest of Dean - too many trees!

Edited

lol he couldn't see the forest for the ... oh nevermind

cockadoodledandy · 13/05/2024 21:02

My partner once fell out with me (and made me apologise, in tears) on holiday, on my birthday, because I didn't realise he wanted me to order him a bowl of chips*, and the kitchen closed after I'd ordered.

*I had ordered him the cheese toast he wanted, and a bowl of chips for me which I was happy to share but he refused to eat because 'he wanted his own chips'.

Endoftheroad12345 · 13/05/2024 21:09

@TheTruthWillSetYouFreeMaybe

I vomited every morning for 9 months with both DC. Constantly for the first 14 weeks and then daily for the remainder of each pregnancy. When I was about 7 months preg with DC2 I was having my usual morning vom, being violent ill - you know the kid of vomiting when you’re so sick you’re almost screaming - in the bathroom which was off the hallway. The kitchen was at the end of the hallway. Ex H was in the kitchen having breakfast and I heard him go to the hallway door and shut it.

When I came out I said “why did you shut the door?”

exH: “oh, I’m just so bored of listening to that every morning”

😵‍💫

BirthdayRainbow · 13/05/2024 21:12

I doubt anyone wants to listen to someone throwing up, whatever the reason.

cockadoodledandy · 13/05/2024 21:13

mossylog · 12/05/2024 23:48

While most of the sulkers described are just quite self-absorbed and manipulative, some of the descriptions of "tantrums" read to me as likely autistic meltdowns.

Not being able to cope when things don't go to plan, or during holidays where the whole comforting schedule is thrown off. Not an excuse or reason to stay with someone, but probably not all of these men are machiavellian manipulator types.

I suspect there's some autism going on with my partner but I am also painfully aware that he was raised by the biggest narcissist you'd ever (not) care to meet and has undoubtedly absorbed a fair amount of her mentality. Frustrating thing is he sees it all in her but absolutely refuses to observe it in himself.

We've just had an argument because we're going on a murder mystery train journey thing (we love Poirot, Marple etc) for his birthday, and need to book accommodation for the night. He said 'I've had a look at Airbnb, there's a town house looks ok'. Because it will be me sorting it out (god forbid he does it) I said 'oh ok, what's it called?' cue him being really hostile and confrontational because I suggested that just telling me 'there's a townhouse on airbnb' didn't help me find it. But guess what? He's the victim and I'm the aggressor, he's done nothing wrong.

Suchasonganddance · 13/05/2024 21:27

As a child, having endured a grandmother, her son (my father) and a sister who were PIA world class sulkers using sulking when they didn’t get their own way and poisoning the atmosphere, I have always detested this sort of control.
Now, the slightest sign of anyone going into a sulk and they are dead to me. Why does anyone put up with this sort of s*? God the memories this brings back.

Teacherprebaby · 13/05/2024 21:30

Jesus! The stomach comment!

Tarkan · 13/05/2024 21:33

I've just remembered another couple from my ex.

My first night out with friends after having DC1. Because I exclusively breastfeed it was a good few months in before I felt I could go out, he didn't drink and never wanted to go out anyway, he sulked that I went out and had a good time and he had had to change a nappy. When I got home and picked DC up the nappy fell off. It was the first and last change he ever did.

When I had DC2 I had a suspected third degree tear so ended up full of stitches (apparently it wasn't third degree but very close). I went home the same day I gave birth though, although I had been in hospital for most of the day. We had prepay meters for gas and electric and when I got home I realised the electric was almost out so I asked if he could walk to the shop when they opened in the morning. When the morning came he decided he couldn't possibly go as he "wouldn't know what to ask for" and even me explaining to him about handing the key over and asking them to top it up with however much we wanted, that was too much and he went off in a sulk and shut himself away on his computer. So less than 24 hours after giving birth, with stitches from front to back, I walked the 15 minutes each way to the nearest shop I could get a top up at. I'm pretty sure that's why some of my stitches ripped and my midwife was horrified when I told her why I hadn't been fully resting.

Tarkan · 13/05/2024 21:44

We hadn't planned DC1 but we had planned DC2, he sulked when I fell pregnant despite us trying (because I had said it could take a while to conceive).

He didn't like hospitals so didn't come to any scans and wasn't at either birth. I was alone both times (thankfully the midwives were lovely and DC2 was actually delivered by a family friend).

He was in the hospital sulking when I had DC1 like I mentioned before, but only because my dad was going to drive me to the hospital when I went into labour and he forced my ex out of bed and into the car (yes he was upstairs sleeping while I was yelling downstairs with each contraction). He didn't want to come into the room at all. I asked him to stay home when I had DC2 so he could look after DC1 and we also had a TV due to be delivered that day. It was probably a better experience for both of us that way.

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