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

Husband had an affair - advice needed!

921 replies

Strawberrina · 09/04/2025 11:13

I found out last year that my husband had an affair with a work colleague who is 25 years younger than him. The affair was emotional as well as physical. He was and is her manager at the workplace. The difficulty is that they continue to work together in a small office consisting of 4-5 members of staff, including them, and see each other almost every day. The town in which we live is a small regional town and there are limited jobs available for someone with his level of experience. We have reconciled and are working through things, but I'm at my wits end about what to do! I'm not happy that they work together and see each other almost daily.
Any advice would be welcome!

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 10:35

RealEagle · 24/04/2025 10:20

“You hope not”. Is this anyway to live .

@RealEagle It certainly isn't... I've got a lot to think about.

OP posts:
OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 24/04/2025 10:41

There are jobs in other cities you know, and if he has to commute well that's what he has to do !
He had the affair, which is still ongoing, he needs to make the effort to find the new job.

Why is he having a long service holiday of several months ?

My divorce application would have already been submitted.

CiaoMeow · 24/04/2025 10:42

Sorry. OP, I know it's not what you want to hear, but unless he leaves to work somewhere else, I see no hope. How can you possibly live like this? If he was truly remorseful, it wouldn't matter if had to leave the job and get a less well-paid job at a lower level. What consequences exactly has he faced for his behaviour? He's lied and cheated before and can do it again.

You need at least to talk this through with a therapist so vent and process. Even if he's telling the truth and nothing every happen between them again, the suppressed anger will be very damaging to you in one way or another.

CiaoMeow · 24/04/2025 10:43

Sorry for above typos!

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 10:45

OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 24/04/2025 10:41

There are jobs in other cities you know, and if he has to commute well that's what he has to do !
He had the affair, which is still ongoing, he needs to make the effort to find the new job.

Why is he having a long service holiday of several months ?

My divorce application would have already been submitted.

He has worked with his current employer for 10 years and is entitled to long service leave of 3 months. Plus, he has 2 months of annual/personal leave saved. So that's 5 months in total. 5 months of not seeing the OW.

OP posts:
scoobysnaxx · 24/04/2025 10:49

stop focusing on HER. She is IRRELEVANT. She could be any woman.

older younger prettier uglier fatter thinner louder quieter

absolutely anyone.

HE is the one who is married. His loyalty is supposed to be to YOU and only you.

your anger needs to be directed at him. Not focused on getting this woman out of his life. He has admitted he loves her. She’s not a one off shag. Their affair is almost certainly going to continue. If it doesn’t, they’ll be another one.

rainbowstardrops · 24/04/2025 10:50

Once again, he’s taking you for a fool and you’re allowing him to do it.
You’ll be back here in a few weeks/months saying he’s cheated YET AGAIN.
You need to stop being so naive that just because they won’t see each other in the office, that they’ll suddenly lose feelings for each other. They won’t.

dumbledorat · 24/04/2025 10:51

Name changed because my goodness the vipers can be cruel to those who choose to stay.

My 'D'H had an affair 13 years ago now. I poured my heart out on MN and the old relationships board crowd really laid into me for being a weak sap. It was brutal. I was really hurt and came off MN for a while to lick my wounds. However despite the way they went about it, which wasn't nice, there was some truth in what they were saying that I did gain strength from.

Understand that the fact he 'went back' means he never ended it with her. If he is seeing her every day and she hasn't dumped him it will be on going. He will have one story for you and one for her. Think along the lines of 'he is worried about your mental health so is staying with you for now, but can still see her, and he'll leave when you are more robust/the kids are are accepting/the risk of losing their jobs has receded/etc.' He will lie to you, to her, to his family, to everyone. Also understand that he will admit to the least he thinks he can get away with. So 'we just kissed' is never just kissed. My 'D'H just kissed a colleague. Or more accurately they'd been having a full affair for months and had been away on holiday several times when he was 'working' overseas. That was especially hurtful as we hadn't had a holiday in about 12 years because apparently it was too expensive.

Do you want him back? I mean really want him back on the understanding it will never be the same again. The trust might well come back if you both truly move past this but your relationship will have changed. Deep down a small part of you will always slightly despise him for being a weak man who cares only about himself. It doesn't matter how much work he does on himself you will always know that to be true. Right now you are probably in trauma mode where you desperately want everything to be as it was and are focussing on eliminating the OW without thinking outside of that. Affairs are very destructive. Trauma and PTSD are real.

If you have any chance of salvaging things you need to kick him out now, or leave. Nothings changes for him unless he gets a really big shock and loses control of the narrative. He'll either up sticks and run off with OW (in which case you have saved yourself months of trauma with him playing with your emotions while he decides whether you are 'good enough'), or he will have a horrible shock of the reality of what life post divorce looks like. No more shiny exciting affair. I bet you he'll come crawling back, but by then you may not want him. Go out, live your life, you think you love him and perhaps you do but I also think (and it was true in my case) there is an element of fear of the unknown.

Why did I stay, well I was pregnant, had given up my career to support his and financially was very trapped. Had I had a good career of my own I probably would have done things differently. We've made it work but my goodness it has been hard and it took probably 10 years to reach the point where we can genuinely forget and properly move on. 10 years!

Calliopespa · 24/04/2025 10:56

You are entitled to your own feelings op so I don’t mean this as an attempt to shame you out of them, but when you say you love him, how and why?

You may have genuine reasons but for me I would struggle to love someone the same way after this. I guess what I am asking is, are you sure you have really re-examined your feelings or is it a “habit” to feel you love him?

Diarygirlqueen · 24/04/2025 11:02

@dumbledorat well said.
Please listen to this great advice.

I can feel your pain through your posts, he doesn't deserve you x

RealEagle · 24/04/2025 11:10

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 10:35

@RealEagle It certainly isn't... I've got a lot to think about.

Make sure you think of yourself first

Hopelesscase32 · 24/04/2025 11:12

You may as well lie on the floor and let him walk all over you.
You honestly need to find wherever it is you buried your self respect

Ticktockwatchclock · 24/04/2025 11:16

If you are working full time, you won’t know if he is meeting up with the OW during the day. She may take some annual leave to meet with him. You would be non the wiser.

OlderGlaswegianLivingInDevon · 24/04/2025 11:19

5 months of freedom during the day whilst you are at work to do what he wants and see whom he wants...

Dery · 24/04/2025 11:21

@Strawberrina - just seconding @dumbledorat’s excellent advice. Please read it carefully - including the bit about leaving or kicking him out for now. Your DCs have left home. You’re financially independent. You’re in very different shoes from @dumbledorat. Make him really feel the consequences of his actions. After all, this may well not be his first affair - it’s just the first you’ve known about. Even if he loves you, is his love worth having if this is how he treats you?

My mum gave my dad repeated chances but nothing changed so in the end she kicked him out - and she had been with him since she was 15, married at 18, going straight from her parental home to married life. She was 50 when she kicked him out. She had never lived independently. It was tough to start with but she absolutely flourished. And, as I mentioned previously, met a wonderful man about 5 years later and had a very happy second marriage (very sadly, both my mum and my stepdad have now died, hence the past tense).

Of course, you can stay with him if that suits you for financial reasons but you need to start thinking with your head not your heart.

SallyWD · 24/04/2025 11:23

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 10:45

He has worked with his current employer for 10 years and is entitled to long service leave of 3 months. Plus, he has 2 months of annual/personal leave saved. So that's 5 months in total. 5 months of not seeing the OW.

5 months of not seeing the other woman? Are you serious? If anything he'll have more time to see her. You'll be working and he'll have empty days to fill.
You haven't answered my question about whether you believe his bullshit excuse that last week's kiss was a one off and the OW was hitting on him?
You seem to just blindly believe absolutely everything he says. Don't you realise that he's a liar and is not telling you the truth?

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 11:29

SallyWD · 24/04/2025 11:23

5 months of not seeing the other woman? Are you serious? If anything he'll have more time to see her. You'll be working and he'll have empty days to fill.
You haven't answered my question about whether you believe his bullshit excuse that last week's kiss was a one off and the OW was hitting on him?
You seem to just blindly believe absolutely everything he says. Don't you realise that he's a liar and is not telling you the truth?

I don't believe that there was only one kiss, there must have been more. But he's adamant that they did not have sex. As I've said, I don't know the OW personally and have never met her. But, based on what he has told me about her (I do ask a lot of questions), she sounds quite manipulative and probably knows that he is weak with no self control. Yes, I do realise that he has made promises to me before that there would be no physical contact ever again and broke those promises.

OP posts:
waterrat · 24/04/2025 11:32

you are blaming a younger woman - MUCH younger and more junior - for manipulating your 'weak, low control' husband???

that is just horrible Op. Look at this in reality - he is the manipulative one and he is manipulating both of you.

SallyWD · 24/04/2025 11:38

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 11:29

I don't believe that there was only one kiss, there must have been more. But he's adamant that they did not have sex. As I've said, I don't know the OW personally and have never met her. But, based on what he has told me about her (I do ask a lot of questions), she sounds quite manipulative and probably knows that he is weak with no self control. Yes, I do realise that he has made promises to me before that there would be no physical contact ever again and broke those promises.

I feel really sad for you but with respect - I repeat my point that you are blindly believing everything he says - because you desperately want to believe his version of events.
You want to believe she's a manipulative temptress and he's a poor, weak, vulnerable man.
Can you imagine the version of events he gives OW about you?? I'm sure he's spinning the usual lines "Oh I can't leave her yet because of mental health. She'd probably kill herself. We're not living as husband and wife. We have separate bedrooms, we haven't slept together for years. It's you I love but life's complicated." etc. I'm the same age as you and I've seen this so many times.

dumbledorat · 24/04/2025 11:41

OP every word that comes out of his mouth will be either a lie or twisted to make him look like the wronged party. Believe me I've been there and so many women have been there and the story rarely changes. Apparently my 'D'H was pursued relentlessly by a much younger woman too. Poor man barely stood a chance. Like that happened...

outofideas2 · 24/04/2025 11:41

@Strawberrina I really feel for you. I've been there and I understand the need to hold on to your marriage and all that is familiar. I never thought I would be that woman either and, before the affair, would have been adamant infidelity would mean the end of our marriage. We never know how we will react to a situation until we're in it. BUT your husband has shown you who he is. My husband went to the greatest lengths (and still does) to show how much he regretted his actions and that he would do whatever it took to rebuild our marriage. Your husband isn't doing that.

Maybe five months apart will kill this affair but if, as you say, he is weak with no self control, what about the next woman he encounters who is willing to be his OW? He hasn't shown you that he has any intention of behaving better. Do you want to spend the rest of your days worrying about every woman he meets, because at the moment that's what you're signing up for? You will become a shadow of the woman you are and you deserve better.

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 11:42

waterrat · 24/04/2025 11:32

you are blaming a younger woman - MUCH younger and more junior - for manipulating your 'weak, low control' husband???

that is just horrible Op. Look at this in reality - he is the manipulative one and he is manipulating both of you.

Hi @waterrat I'm sorry if it sounded like I was blaming her. I realise that it's H who has obligations towards me and has made promises to me. But I also know that he is weak and clearly cannot control himself given that he's cheated on me.

OP posts:
thepariscrimefiles · 24/04/2025 11:43

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 10:45

He has worked with his current employer for 10 years and is entitled to long service leave of 3 months. Plus, he has 2 months of annual/personal leave saved. So that's 5 months in total. 5 months of not seeing the OW.

Completely off topic, but your husband works for a great organisation if he gets 3 months off for long service after working there for 10 years. Where I worked, it was a gift voucher for 25 years and 3 months off after 35 years.

BigAnne · 24/04/2025 11:46

Strawberrina · 24/04/2025 11:29

I don't believe that there was only one kiss, there must have been more. But he's adamant that they did not have sex. As I've said, I don't know the OW personally and have never met her. But, based on what he has told me about her (I do ask a lot of questions), she sounds quite manipulative and probably knows that he is weak with no self control. Yes, I do realise that he has made promises to me before that there would be no physical contact ever again and broke those promises.

You sound as charming as your husband. It's he who is manipulative.

TheHouseElf · 24/04/2025 11:47

Stop making excuses for him. He's weak, she's manipulative. He's a grown adult arsed man, of some age and experience, he knows exactly what he is doing and he's enjoying every moment of it, regardless of the hurt he it causes you.

You are acquiescing this by constantly forgiving and trying to mend the unmendable. He's treating you like dirt, how can you tolerate this?

You're marriage is over. Yes its going to cause disruption ending it. Yes, you will be financially worse off, but you need to make plans to move on and stop allowing your husband to continue to treat you like something on the bottom of his shoe!