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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

Am I being controlling ? Or am I setting boundries?

60 replies

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:31

My husbands friend was killed a few years before I met him. He was friends with the wife and weirdly I thought carried a photograph of the friends child in his wallet when we met, he'd go down and stay over at her house swearing nothing ever happened between them. ( the child is now a grown man )
She lived about 2 hours from my husband and she called him daily.
When we met and went on our first holiday together, this woman called 4 times during the week ' just for a chat' I ended up in the bathroom while they laughed and joked on the phone in the bedroom for ages I felt like a spare part.
When I moved across to live with my then boyfriend ( now husband) she would call him and make excuses ' can you come and help with a computer issue' can you come and collect the son and take him to a sports event etc etc ...and he would drop everything and ruining the weekend. ( she had 2 brothers and parents locally thay could help her )
I had to have emergency surgery for an ectopic pregnancy and while I was in theatre she called and asked him to drive down to pick up the son and take him to another sporting event then drive him back home again - she knew I was in surgery and it meant he wasn't there when I woke up infact I didn't see him until the evening the next day.
I know she called him while he was at work most days.
I told him it made me uncomfortable and that i felt he was putting their friendship before our marriage.
He did back off a little but then she started sending him abusive texts when she was drinking which he passed off as nothing.
She caused alot of grief between us and I definately felt she was trying to come between us, he was oblivious to her behaviour and said it was in my head but it was clear she was jealous that I was with him.
Anyway fast forward and last week she died suddenly and yesterday he comes home and tells me our weekend plans were cancelled and he was going to her funeral this morning and would be away all day.
I was so angry and hurt, and said that's fine but when he gets back we need to talk as his behaviour over the years with her and also his obsession with this particular sport has taken priority over our relationship for over 15 years, causing me significant mental health issues- ie disappearing for 10 days the night I came home from an open hysterectomy leaving me alone in the house, doing the exact same thing when I moved countries to live with him, within 12 hours of me arriving disappearing off to this sport event for 10 days. ( this has been an ongoing thing for 15 years)
So I didn't sleep at all last night I was so upset about this funeral, so I said that when he got home we needed to talk and make desicions on our future whether we stayed together or split as I wasn't prepared to put up with the behaviour any longer and the effect it is having on me mentally.
He said he wanted to go and meet up with friends he hadn't seen in years and pay his respects to this woman who quite frankly had never ever shown me any respect as his wife in the last 15 years.
He said my behaviour was controlling- that i was using the relationship as a threat to control him going to the funeral, i consider it setting long needed boundaries ( as discussed when we had marriage counselling - where incidently the counsellor did point out that his behaviour was very selfish and emotionally abusive)

So am I in the wrong for being upset at his insistence on dropping everything and going to the funeral ? He's made me question my own behaviour

OP posts:
Pantaloons99 · 15/06/2024 19:36

There is something very very very wrong with your husband's behaviour. Your instincts are screaming it at you. The whole behaviour with this friend is highly questionable and the behaviour ref the hobby. And you have a counsellor also telling you

OP, do you have other decent kind people in your life? When you are alone you can be manipulated so badly that you don't see how bad things are for you. You've tolerated the intolerable in my view. I imagine he has done many more things that you have tolerated.

Please go back to seeing a counsellor 🙏 do it all on your own without him. See a female

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:39

Thank you, no i don't have anyone here, I'm quite isolated to be honest, I just feel like I'm of no importance and that their relationship and him wanting to go to the funeral takes precedence over my feelings

OP posts:
Beautifulbythebay · 15/06/2024 19:40

It's his son isn't it?

Greenleavesinthesun · 15/06/2024 19:42

Going to the funeral is ok IMO. The main problem is you didn’t give him an ultimatum years previous. It doesn’t mean much now that she has passed.

You put up with shit for 15 years, now the problem will be solved you want to throw the towel in. Doesn’t make much sense.

Thi k about what you truly want and go with that. If you want to leave then leave, don’t make it about the funeral. If you want to stay then stay, the woman has gone now.

Greenleavesinthesun · 15/06/2024 19:42

And it’s obviously his son. Have you ever asked her?

frenchonionsnoop · 15/06/2024 19:42

Beautifulbythebay · 15/06/2024 19:40

It's his son isn't it?

I thought this. Something is off for sure.

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:43

No it isn't, I thought so too at the beginning but the son is the double of his father there is no question at all.
I had to spell it out to him that it wasn't normal to have the photo in his wallet and it was removed but he just didn't understand as he was so close to the friend who died ( I do genuinely think my husband is on the spectrum too with behaviours over the years- so he doesn't tend to look at things the way others would )

OP posts:
Pantaloons99 · 15/06/2024 19:44

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:39

Thank you, no i don't have anyone here, I'm quite isolated to be honest, I just feel like I'm of no importance and that their relationship and him wanting to go to the funeral takes precedence over my feelings

There are bigger problems than the funeral. That's just the tip of the iceberg. His behaviour going back years is completely intolerable and horrendous. Let's say he wasn't having a relationship with this woman ( it seems he was and that's his son) then he has still behaved appallingly!
I wouldn't even think about the funeral, please just look at the way he has treated you. A counsellor has told you. This is an awful relationship and I don't know how you have coped with this without developing mental health problems or physical health issues??

ForFirmBiscuit · 15/06/2024 19:44

I don’t mean to sound dismissive, I just don’t have the time to respond properly but I do want to say that she’s dead now so if you were going to leave because of her you should’ve done it whilst she was still alive not now she’s not there to get in the way any more

HelpMePlan1 · 15/06/2024 19:44

ForFirmBiscuit · 15/06/2024 19:44

I don’t mean to sound dismissive, I just don’t have the time to respond properly but I do want to say that she’s dead now so if you were going to leave because of her you should’ve done it whilst she was still alive not now she’s not there to get in the way any more

I was going to say something similar to this, just wasn't sure how to word it.

Beautifulbythebay · 15/06/2024 19:45

As a baby my dd was apparently the double of my dh.. She wasn't my dh's...

SleepingStandingUp · 15/06/2024 19:45

Look his behaviour is unacceptable but I don't think the funeral is the place to try and stop him. This should have been sorted before you married him, before you moved country bit instead you waited until she was dead to say "no, pick me". Were you worried he'd have picked her?

Re for the sport, you accepted it all these years, had the odd moan but tolerated it. You can't be surprised he is still doing it.

I wouldn't do anything to try and stop him going or sabotage things once he's there.

However I would be using the time away to work out how viable leaving was, and to start the process.

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:47

I think if I'm being honest this was just the straw that broke the camels back- it could have easily been her ringing to go down again but I do believe it was the fact he said he was going to pay his respects that finally hit home for me .. and that where has his respect been

OP posts:
Barefootsally · 15/06/2024 19:50

I think you’re a bit late setting boundaries now love.

I’d expect him to be grieving significantly over the next few months as he was clearly in love with her.

Him going to her when your were having an eptopic pregnancy is absolutely unforgivable

Springwatch123 · 15/06/2024 19:52

I think you need to allow him to grieve the death the death of the wife, and the link to his best friend. It’s normal to want to catch with friends at the funeral.

However, she does seem like the third cog in your relationship. I guess he supported her at first out of loyalty to his friend, and she got used to it.

Going forward, he needs to realise that you need support and respect.

Unexpectedlysinglemum · 15/06/2024 19:52

Beautifulbythebay · 15/06/2024 19:40

It's his son isn't it?

I think so.

Op I'm so sorry you were left alone twice after surgery.

JurassicClark · 15/06/2024 19:56

My brother's best friend was killed and my brother had a vefry close relationship with his wife and stood as surrogate father to their child.

I know he prioritised that over quite a few other important commitments to other. It was a sort of survivor's guilt - that his friend was cut down in his youth while my brother grew up, had a large family, had adventures, lived.

I wouldn't read anything into the parentage of the child etc, is all I'm saying. Your DH behaved badly to you and let you down repeatedly. I'm sorry you went through that.

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:56

I've been close to leaving before whuch is why he begged me to go to counselling which I did, while we were in counselling he accepted his behaviour was wrong and acknowledged the things he shouldn't have done, - things did improve upto the last few months but this funeral came out of the blue and rode rough shod over the boundaries that were set in place during counselling - which is why I'm questioning if I'm being controlling or working within the boundaries set - I didn't word it properly I'm sorry I'm just really upset

OP posts:
INeedTheStuff · 15/06/2024 20:03

I think the funeral is ok as it’s too late now, but I would get a dna test for the son but you should have left years ago. Whatever the reason to leave him now is an ok time to leave

Pantaloons99 · 15/06/2024 20:11

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 19:56

I've been close to leaving before whuch is why he begged me to go to counselling which I did, while we were in counselling he accepted his behaviour was wrong and acknowledged the things he shouldn't have done, - things did improve upto the last few months but this funeral came out of the blue and rode rough shod over the boundaries that were set in place during counselling - which is why I'm questioning if I'm being controlling or working within the boundaries set - I didn't word it properly I'm sorry I'm just really upset

I have a sibling whose behaviour is so appalling and disgusting and bullying, narcissistic the lot. He truly is the 💯 definition of narcissism in it's entirety. Only now in my 40s have I ' seen' the reality of what I have put up with and accepted for my entire life.
I've now gone no contact.

I'm telling you this because it can take a lifetime to see it. I don't want you to feel I'm being harsh on you. When you don't have good people around you who have good boundaries you can question everything you do, think and say and never have a true sense of how to be treated well

Even if he is ND and some behaviour is simply thoughtless rather than intentional cruel then I understand you will be more sympathetic. But if it isn't changing then it doesn't matter why. He has been allowed to do this for your entire marriage because there were no consequences. I believe he will never change and will treat you appallingly in a different way still even long after this woman's funeral.

Please see a counsellor on your own. You will see.

Lmnop22 · 15/06/2024 20:13

If she’s now dead, what will happen to her son? Who will he live with? If it’s his son, now is when you’ll find out…..

Funeral or not, leave him. He clearly prioritised someone else over you at times when you needed him (ectopic pregnancy, hysterectomy) and that’s not OK no matter who was asking.

Often with questions over whether a friendship has crossed the line, I take gender out of the equation and ask what I would think if the friend in question was a male with whom there would be no question of romantic interest. And here, no matter what gender the friend, the instances where he’s abandoned you to do favours for another person are unforgivable.

cansu · 15/06/2024 20:15

The time to be laying down boundaries was ages ago not for the funeral. Obviously he wants to go to this persons funeral. He is clearly upset at her death. If there are other issues in your relationship them deal with it but it seems wrong to be sending messages about this at this time

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 20:18

The child is now a grown man with his own house, he had nothing to do with his mother for a few years because of her behaviour and the man she was with

OP posts:
StormingNorman · 15/06/2024 20:19

There’s no point causing a fuss now she’s dead.

MabelsMam · 15/06/2024 20:20

There were boundaries set, i explained it badly the issue is that he is saying it want a boundary it was controlling because I said we needed to talk when he got back

OP posts: