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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

Partner told SIL we are having marriage counselling?

57 replies

louisewellsx37 · 05/02/2025 15:00

This is a relationship/family that is unhealthy enmeshed. Sister has often crossed boundaries with me, telling me when and when she thinks I should get married, asked why I don't post photos of my partner, just generally got involved and given her unwanted not-relevant to anybody unimportant opinion when it wasn't asked for.

Most recently, I have asked partner to remove her from having his permanent live location (some of you may remember the post). Having someone watch where i am when i am with my fiance at all times makes me really uncomfortable and its not common where i come from. to me, its an invasion of privacy but husband has refused to remove it but said he will turn it off when we go and do something together. my main concern was that we are due to start therapy and i didnt want him/his entire family knowing we are going to pre marital counselling.

last night, before our first session we had been arguing and he had to pop to his sisters house. he came home and told me he told her he hates his life, and we are going to therapy tonight. i am distraight, why? because previously i have seen text msgs on this sister and my fiance mocking me/being disrespectful/b1tching about me, i called her out on it and said she was being two faced. I have every right to think last night was the same just verbally. she does not offer any good advice, but instead will listen and just make the situation worse. now i can imagine she will be asking how our private couples therapy is going?! i am SO SO livid and angry, i cannot and will not be in a relationship where there is zero boundaries, no loyalty to your partner and complete disrespect to how i feel. am i being ott?

OP posts:
Sashya · 06/02/2025 00:44

@louisewellsx37
So you are going into therapy, thinking that a Therapist will "fix" your partner - and explain to him that YOU are right and his close family relationship is wrong???
You complain about him not respecting you, while having no respect for his family, background and culture.

How can you possibly be so full of yourself, thinking that you have the monopoly to decide what is healthy in family relationships? White anglo-saxon person's moral superiority - I am guessing?

Morals are not universal. They are all relative - and are preferences, based on cultural experiences and backgrounds. YOU - are not close with your brother, and don't discuss your life/feelings. Your partner is close to his sister - and discusses his emotions with her. No therapist will tell him not to do that.

Unless you are open to a possibility that you will have to re-examine your inflexibility and need to change your partner - this counselling has no chance.
But it's obvious to anyone reading this thread, bar you..

Why are you so bent on crushing your partner to submission. Is it about winning?

2JFDIYOLO · 06/02/2025 11:39

Love, this thread is full of people who can see what you're stubbornly refusing to acknowledge, which is that you are fundamentally incompatible and that this relationship is already doomed.

It seems you have such different views of what it should be, you're wildly jealous of his family's closeness and seem to think therapy will 'fix' him into seeing your point of view.

It doesn't work like this.

If you're right and his family do disrespect and insult you, and that he's complicit, that's going to get worse.

And if you become pregnant?? They will be right in your business. His sister and mother will know EVERYTHING about what's going on in your uterus unless you keep secrets from him - and will have opinions and instructions that he will present to you as Truth.

louisewellsx37 · 06/02/2025 17:33

Sashya · 06/02/2025 00:44

@louisewellsx37
So you are going into therapy, thinking that a Therapist will "fix" your partner - and explain to him that YOU are right and his close family relationship is wrong???
You complain about him not respecting you, while having no respect for his family, background and culture.

How can you possibly be so full of yourself, thinking that you have the monopoly to decide what is healthy in family relationships? White anglo-saxon person's moral superiority - I am guessing?

Morals are not universal. They are all relative - and are preferences, based on cultural experiences and backgrounds. YOU - are not close with your brother, and don't discuss your life/feelings. Your partner is close to his sister - and discusses his emotions with her. No therapist will tell him not to do that.

Unless you are open to a possibility that you will have to re-examine your inflexibility and need to change your partner - this counselling has no chance.
But it's obvious to anyone reading this thread, bar you..

Why are you so bent on crushing your partner to submission. Is it about winning?

I have every faith that the therapist who is a qualified professional will be unbiased enough to make decisions on what is HEALTHY and what is not. It’s about respecting your partner, making sure we align on our values (as my partner has said he agrees with my ideas of marriage, I have told him several times it’s ok if we do not align but he insists he does). It’s not about being right, it’s about my gut instinct knowing what’s right and wrong.

OP posts:
livelovelough24 · 06/02/2025 17:43

I am sorry OP, but this is something that people often misunderstand when it comes to therapy. Therapist will not make any decisions for you, will not tell your partner that he is wrong, or you that you are wrong. They will try to help you work things out, that is all.

DebOnDating · 06/02/2025 18:28

Ugh. I cannot stand "men" who act like this. Give him his ring back and move on. One thing you do not want to do is mess up your life by marrying into this family. All of his raggedy relatives would become your inlaws. Then they will REALLY think they have rights to be all up in your business. GIRL!! Dating and being engaged are the times to assess your partner's rightness for you. You can clearly see you two have vastly different values when it comes to marriage, privacy, and respect. He hates his life huh? Then tell him you are releasing him back into the wild to live with his raggedy family. Then go. You will feel so much better.

jsku · 06/02/2025 18:34

@louisewellsx37

You gut tells you what is right/wrong for you.
Your part er has his own gut - and his gut tells him what is right for him.

Neither gut is wrong. No therapist is going to act as a Judge and try to convince either of you of some universal must have ‘boundaries’.

I hope you two will realise in counselling that you cant be happy without some major changes in yourselves - that will only lead to resentments.

If you were to have children - he’d want them to have a close relationship with his family. You - will be constantly on guard and try to prevent it. I feel bad for the poor future kid(s) being brought into this cold war situation…

There is hope you will drive him away - as surely only a blind person wont see you for the controlling and superior person you so clearly project here…

myrtleWilson · 06/02/2025 18:43

Does this post have vibes of the one where the poster banged on lots and lots about the fact she was soon to be married and complained about her partner over sharing with his mom (he’d shared the logistics of financial set up but not her personal finance info) com ok aimed about how often he spoke to his mom? On that thread the OP then sock puppeted and so it was closed (not deleted I think)

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