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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

How do I get over affair partner? No closure.

214 replies

PinkyBrain290 · 06/04/2026 18:43

I don’t even know where to start with this, but I feel lost, torn and expect to get flamed (rightly so).

I’m married, kids, long-term relationship, kid 30's. In December I met someone through work at an event. It wasn’t meant to be anything, but it turned into a connection, a one night stand and us messaging constantly for 3 months straight. He lives 120 miles from me but we are both remote. He landed a job in a town by mine and said he wanted to continue meeting. We met for a drink in January, kissed but nothing more than that. We have only slept together once, and for me that wasn’t casual, I've been with DH for 18 years. AP did initially tell me he was single, but it then unraveled he wasn't and had always been with the mother of his children. When I found out he apologised, said he was scared of what I would think etc "because he liked me".

What messed with my head is that AP was very hot and cold towards the end. One minute it felt like there was something real there, the next he’d pull away. He was also in a serious relationship with 2 children. I think that inconsistency made me want it more.

It all came to a head when I ended up telling his wife. He told me they were planning a wedding... and didn't have sex anymore. I told his wife because I got fed up of the hot and cold. We were supposed to be meeting up in March and when it got to the day of him travelling over, he said his manager wanted to take him out and he wouldn't be able to see me until about 10-11pm at night, but that's when it dawned on me that to him it was sex only. He was in my area for two nights, the first night we could have met for a drink but it was the day before his first day at work and I did feel like it was just general excuses.

Anyway telling his wife to be was a huge reaction on my part and I regret how I handled it. Since then, he’s blocked me completely. No closure, no conversation, nothing (obviously). I blocked him on Instagram and he blocked me on all other platforms.

And now I’m just… stuck with it. It's been over 4 weeks and I'm just not over it.
I can’t message him even though it was wrong. It's like a drug. I can’t get answers. And somehow that’s made it worse. It’s like my brain keeps going over it, trying to make sense of something that’s already done.
What’s confusing is I know I wouldn’t have left my family, and he wouldnt have either.

Ive told my husband everything. Hes upset and wants to make it work with me, however now I’m grieving something that was never really going anywhere.

It’s been hitting me in waves. I’ll be fine, then suddenly I’m crying. It's been over 4 weeks and I've done nothing but secretly cry all weekend.

Ive stupidly looked at his partners social media and it looks like they're staying together so I don't know what rubbish he has told her, however I know I'm wrong.

I guess I’m asking:

  • How do you get over someone when there’s no closure?
  • Is this just a case of time doing its thing?
  • Has anyone else had something like this that felt huge at the time but eventually just… disappeared?

I feel ridiculous even writing this but I'm spiralling and I just want to speak to him - it's bonkers.

OP posts:
Lottapianos · 07/04/2026 14:47

'This has really triggered something off and I don't get it. I will start therapy and I'm so scared what it will bring up'

It is scary. It's taking the first step towards changing your life, and that's always going to be scary. It is the road to freedom though

By the way, you're looking for psychotherapy, not CBT. You don't need a quick fix or simple strategies. I would highly recommend psychodynamic psychotherapy - it explores how lessons you learned early in life impact your thinking in the present.

Good luck. It's a long road, but worth every step

Sartre · 07/04/2026 16:20

I had an EA with a colleague a couple of years ago. Both married with children, he was 14 years older than me. I fell for him instantly. So cliche and cringe to admit it but it really was like the films when you set eyes on each other for the first time and it’s like the world is never the same again. I can’t really explain the connection we had, only to say it was instant and uncontrollable. I’ve never met anyone like him before and doubt I will again. We just had an energy, a spark, I can’t really pinpoint or articulate why.

We never acted on it physically, in part because we didn’t really have chance to without going out of our way to make it happen which would have added a whole other layer of deception to things. We knew our marriages and children had to come first. Had we met as single people, I have no doubt it would have happened but we just felt our families were more important at that time.

He had to return to his home country for personal reasons so found a job there and left. I was devastated. I actually felt like I was experiencing grief. I cried an awful lot, I developed a drinking habit, I got depressed and stopped caring for myself, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I had to have therapy.

DH found out, he knew something had been wrong for ages so he trawled through my phone and laptop and found our emails. Then we had to go through marriage counselling. I felt like a total idiot. I beat myself up so much for the whole thing. Think I felt so ridiculous as a mother in her early 30s above all else- like I should know better. I had to stop contacting him obviously. I still think about him, it would be remiss to say otherwise. It’s less intense than the early days thankfully so I don’t think about him none stop but every day for sure, though it’s more fleeting now. I google him every now and then to see if he’s published anything, I read his work. It’s silly and I wish I could fully get past it.

I wanted to tell you so you know you’re not alone. I know you did have sex so it’s a bit different in that sense but I get the endless longing. I do recommend counselling, it helps but other than that, it really is a case of time being a great healer I’m afraid. Go easy on yourself.

Forgotthebins · 07/04/2026 16:40

It’s good you are going into therapy as it sounds as though you have hit the self-destruct button. Try not to let yourself spiral too much before you are in therapy. Summon all your self respect and all the care for your family to try to create a period of stability. Maybe your marriage is not right but you can still achieve a good ending. Try to appreciate that your husband prizes the family to the extent he does. You can appreciate that even though you can also acknowledge that part of you feels unseen and the future is uncertain.

you already have the closure - he only wanted sex, you wanted more, a tale as old as time. Don’t look back any more. It’s the present moment that you need to focus on until you get yourself in front of a therapist.

WorstPaceScenario · 07/04/2026 16:46

PinkyBrain290 · 06/04/2026 20:50

To the person who called me unhinged, I don't know, probably? I know my reactions and feelings are NOT normal, hence why I've come onto here to get some advice.

I've been with DH since I was 16. It's the only relationship I've had. We split for a year when we were 22 because he fell for someone who he worked with and it broke me, but he soon came back and I wanted to forgive him. I have forgiven him. Now we're 11 years down the line and I'm doing the same thing but I've some how caught feelings for something that was never real???

I never told AP's partner because I wanted to split them up, I got fed up of him blowing hot and cold. I also told him explicitly that I couldn't keep talking to him if we weren't metering up and he assured me we were. I'm confused, hurt, it's been over 4 weeks with no contact and it's really rearing its head with me emotionally.

My husband - I love him, we have the perfect life but I don't know think hr fulfills my emotional needs. I've told him over and over, I feel like he doesn't really listen. He's really laid back.

It's not your reactions and feelings that are the biggest problem, OP, it's the conscious behaviour in the three months preceding the breakup that's the problem. That, and the fact that you told his DP on him because you didn't like his behaviour, and now you're surprised that you no longer have access to him?

If you loved and respected your husband, you wouldn't have done this in the first place. Same goes for your AP and his DP. You play silly games, you win silly prizes. The most surprising thing is that no one told your DH

Gloriia · 07/04/2026 16:47

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 14:00

I went for an STD check a few weeks ago and it's clear. I just want the pain to stop. I agree with you all it's unfair on my DH. I was stupid to think the other man ever had feelings for me, despite him telling me he did & drunk messaging me saying it's not fair I'm with my husband blablabla. In hindsight I think he has form for cheating, but so do I after this.

Logically I knew ALL of this wrong, but it was almost like I couldn't help myself which sounds absurd.

Have you checked your dh's phone, do you not worry that he's maybe shrugged it off because he's at it too?

You need to accept the fact that it's the marriage that is the problem, the fling just a symptom of your boredom and dissatisfaction.

Consider separating then you can focus on online dating maybe? You got tied down young maybe it's time to let you hair down a bit more and that's what mooning over this cheating bloke is actually all about?

Grammarninja · 07/04/2026 17:16

You told your partner about it all. He forgave you. I'm guessing this isn't a shock. The power balance between you and your partner is heavily weighted in your favour. This is why you don't respect him (he'll love me and forgive me for anything) and also why you're infatuated with someone who doesn't give a shit about you. When you don't respect a person, you don't value the way they see you and then when you meet a person you value who goes on to treat you poorly, your ego gets really damaged and is desperate to be restored. You've attached your self-worth to a person who doesn't love you. Therapy will eek all of this out.
If your partner left in the morning and had a new girlfriend within a week you'd probably be feeling as lovesick over him.

Thewookiemustgo · 07/04/2026 18:39

PinkyBrain290 · 06/04/2026 22:42

This is me venting now so apologies in advance if this makes no sense (exhausted). I don't have one night stands or just sleep around, this is why I'm hurt so much. I thought there was a connection honestly, then he would pull back. Then I'd pull back and he'd come back !!! Regardless, I wanted more than sex. After the ONS he was the one constantly messaging me. I've had limmerance a long long time ago and I feel it's happening again now. I do also have an addictive personality. I don't know how I've got so far in life. I have done really well, but there are a few dark secrets I have with regards to dopamine hits.

it is almost an obsession - I want to reach out to him but it's wrong and will not achieve anything, and most importantly it's not fair on my family

It isn’t ’almost an obsession’, OP, it is an obsession.
Addictive personalities can get into affairs and it quickly becomes a drug, (because nearly all affairs are just that, a huge dopamine hit which adds secret excitement to everyday life) which is hard to give up.
The affair was propping you up and making you feel good and now it’s gone, you’re left with an empty void which you were using the affair to fill. You miss the excitement, having something to think about. He represents the feelings, the infatuation, the fantasy. You don’t miss him, he could have been anyone you found attractive who flattered you, you miss how the whole thing added a thrill to your life. You relied on this to make you happy each day instead of relying on yourself to do so. Daily messaging for three months was part of the obsession. Now it’s abruptly gone. You are effectively in withdrawal.

From the Emotional Affair Journey website:

“So, what is affair withdrawal?
Affair withdrawal is the emotional and psychological distress that occurs after ending an affair. Similar to breaking a chemical addiction, it involves a detox period where the brain and body adjust to the sudden loss of intensity, secrecy, and stimulation.
Affairs spike your brain with dopamine—the same reward chemical triggered by gambling or drug use. Ending the affair cuts off that supply, leaving your brain confused, foggy, and craving the connection—even if it logically makes no sense.”

You can’t get ‘closure’ from this now, because it was never a real relationship and he’s gone for good.
Considering what you both did, you are very fortunate to still have your spouse and him his fiancée. The nearest thing you got to closure, was when you decided to tell her and he blocked you. It was more of a slamming shut than a closure to be honest and there was never going to be any other outcome than an abrupt about turn by him.
I think you just don’t want to feel this way any more, obsessing pointlessly (this really is pointless) over something that was actually but a huge connection, it was a bloody terrible thing for you both to do to your husband and his fiancée. You’re adding huge insult to injury for your poor husband who I bet has no inkling that he’s still mentally being sidelined and thinks this is all over and that you’ve re-committed to him. Mentally you haven’t, you’re still elsewhere.
You’re mooning after a fantasy, both he and it were not what you’re dressing it up as.
OW do this a lot on here, in denial about the true, actual part they’ve played in the cheating man’s life and astonished, despite knowing he’s a liar, that he’d lie to them, too. They thought they were chosen, more special to him than his wife, his saviour and soulmate and other such crap. They are reeling with the shock that everything they were worried they might have become, every doubt they ever had but pushed hastily aside, has come true. They are more often than not a bit-player, an extra, superfluous to the plot of his real life and whose removal does nothing to alter the course of it and was never going to, no matter what his script was.
There could never be a real connection because that wasn’t on his shopping list, he wanted something that meant nothing to him other than an ego boost, easy novelty sex and a boredom killer before he got married.
The bollocks he’s told his wife will be right up there with the bullshit banquet he fed you.
He just doesn’t want to know, just like the vast majority of cheating men when they get found out, you eventually or abruptly get dumped, no matter what he’s told you. You’re left with the limerance/ obsession and wondering how the hell he can just block you like nothing happened. He can block you because to him, nothing much happened and he hasn’t lost anything that he really cares about. He’s made his choice, although to him there never actually was one.
Stop wondering, he’s probably furious with you for telling his fiancée and feels that he’s well rid of you. Nobody wants to hear that they got played, but this guy was playing a game. Lure you in, succeed in getting you to have sex with him, then retreat when it looked like you wanted a romantic connection, to show you that what has started isn’t a relationship that can go anywhere. When you go quiet, he enjoys this game so pursues to make sure that when he snaps his fingers you’ll be there. It’s all a game to him. I think you knew that when you told his fiancée. Nothing but rejection and anger could ever have come from that, the second you did it you got closure, your knew there was no way back.
You say you love your husband and have been honest with him. Mooning about what has ended isn’t being honest, he’d be devastated to find that out.
If you really love your husband you’ll treat this like a drug withdrawal and put all your thoughts and energy where it always should have been, with him.
You don’t need closure OP, it’s over. You need to accept that and move on, showing your husband that you can be trusted and that this other man has been left in the past.
There’s no magic wand, just remove the drama from it (it’s not a huge romance, or lost love) you messed up badly and had extra marital sex with a guy who wanted nothing more from you and has exited your life. That’s it, nothing more. The messages etc were just part of the fantasy and game you wee both playing.
Nobody here can say anything to remove these thoughts from your head, you’re the only one who can do it.
Ask yourself if you really want to though. You don’t seem to want to ask yourself, you’re asking randoms here to give you a way to stop it. It’s your responsibility to stop the obsessing.
I think you’re afraid of stopping the obsession, because you’re scared that the reality is that you have nothing in your real life to replace it with. This isn’t your husband’s problem or a marriage problem, it’s a you problem. You have a void within you that needs exploring and filling with healthier things than dopamine hits from drugs, alcohol, sex with strangers or whatever your choice is.
Discuss what you and your husband want from the marriage going forward and get honest with yourself about whether or not you really do want him. He’s your husband, not an optional extra to fill the gap where a real, loving, honest relationship should be.
Don’t look to him to meet all your needs, no one person does. We should all meet our own needs and support our partners to meet theirs. Nobody can be all things to all people or even all things to one person, so if you are unhappy don’t automatically blame him or the marriage, look within first.
You are responsible for your own happiness, your husband isn’t. Time for some introspection and self awareness OP. The longer you keep up cold turkey, the sooner this will fade, but cold turkey also means getting on with your life and getting self-aware, without navel gazing about a cheat you slept with who is long gone.

Ilovelurchers · 07/04/2026 19:02

OK OP, you need to try to step away from your emotions for a bit, so you can see them for what they are.

What did the affair partner actually bring to your life? What can you really say you love/miss about this man? It sounds like he treated you quite badly and lied. What do you miss about that?

Was the sex great? Better than sex with your husband? If it's a sex thing, maybe there is a way you can work on that with your husband. Or maybe it's about feeling desired? Or feeling excitement?

It might well be that there are things missing in your relationship, which the affair gave you.

But the point is, you are NOT missing the man himself. You can't be, you barely knew him, plus he has been a dick to you.

You are missing something the affair gave you. Now you need to work out what that is, and whether you can get it in your existing relationship. Or learn to live without it.

Basically, all you can do now is to try to make this a positive learning point. And that would be best achieved through therapy, not by posting on Mumsnet.

PeonyPatch · 07/04/2026 20:05

Lottapianos · 07/04/2026 14:47

'This has really triggered something off and I don't get it. I will start therapy and I'm so scared what it will bring up'

It is scary. It's taking the first step towards changing your life, and that's always going to be scary. It is the road to freedom though

By the way, you're looking for psychotherapy, not CBT. You don't need a quick fix or simple strategies. I would highly recommend psychodynamic psychotherapy - it explores how lessons you learned early in life impact your thinking in the present.

Good luck. It's a long road, but worth every step

I agree regarding the therapy recommendation. However as a CBT therapist myself, I just wanted to let you know that CBT is not a “quick fix.”

DoesthislookgoodOnMe · 07/04/2026 21:18

Well you were very spiteful to say the least.

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 23:09

I am furious that I let myself get into this situation. Why do men just pick women up and drop them? I'm not just blaming him by the way. I just don't get how men can have one night stands and feel nothing. I've been led on. I'm still tearful tonight. I don't understand why 5 weeks later it feels worse.
i promise im going to get a GP appointment tomorrow, then get myself a referral and go private. It's killing me. Why aren't I strong enough just to move forwards ? I've also never had a ONS.

I do love my husband, but I must admit something feels missing and I don't know what it is. He works hard, good parent , cooks, cleans, we have regular good sex, he isn't selfish in bed. Everything is/was calm (even before this happened) and I even then I felt something was off, but I had a difficult childhood. Think addict parents and that's the part I can't bear to go over in therapy.

OP posts:
moderate · 08/04/2026 00:33

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 23:09

I am furious that I let myself get into this situation. Why do men just pick women up and drop them? I'm not just blaming him by the way. I just don't get how men can have one night stands and feel nothing. I've been led on. I'm still tearful tonight. I don't understand why 5 weeks later it feels worse.
i promise im going to get a GP appointment tomorrow, then get myself a referral and go private. It's killing me. Why aren't I strong enough just to move forwards ? I've also never had a ONS.

I do love my husband, but I must admit something feels missing and I don't know what it is. He works hard, good parent , cooks, cleans, we have regular good sex, he isn't selfish in bed. Everything is/was calm (even before this happened) and I even then I felt something was off, but I had a difficult childhood. Think addict parents and that's the part I can't bear to go over in therapy.

Edited

You're still focusing on the wrong thing.

You should be unable to believe you've let yourself get into a situation in which YOU are chasing dopamine rainbows, but instead you're unable to believe how you've got yourself into a situation in which SOMEONE ELSE has wronged you.

Dery · 08/04/2026 00:42

@PinkyBrain290 - take a look at Women Who Love Too Much. You may find it has some helpful insights for you.

I really dislike the suggestion that people have affairs because something is missing in their main relationship. I don’t think it’s true. It doesn’t sound like there’s anything missing in your main relationship.

This is about you. It would help if you could talk about your family of origin in therapy because it’s probably the reason why you’ve stayed with the partner you had at 16 (desperate for some stability) and why you’re having addiction-type reactions to this guy. It may also be because you’ve never experienced a relationship ending because you’re still with your first love. Of course, you’re very lucky that you’re not now experiencing your marriage ending.

fatphalange · 08/04/2026 00:58

You were both bored and/wanted attention. That’s it. Wasn’t even a full-on affair. All this upset over something so meaningless.

Twinandatwoyearold · 08/04/2026 06:59

You may find if you don’t pull your head out of your arse your marriage will end.

It would be interesting to hear your husbands views because I very much doubt he is okay with this. He’s either not hit anger yet, or he’s biding his time and planning his exit with control, or maybe he’s cheating too. To remain composed and chilled out may be shock. But his lack of reaction is unusual.

Do you ask him how he’s feeling? How he is doing each day? Has he got angry? Upset?

He is the real victim here (and the other woman). You had choices - he is in this mess because of your choices.

You can book therapy/counselling online - you don’t need to see your GP. And remember you can sack off any counsellor, especially any that waffle on about unmet needs. It’s nonsense - if your unhappy talk to your spouse. Shagging a loser won’t ever help your marriage.

Explore addiction, boundaries, your ability to lie etc. And the bits you really don’t want to discuss, discuss the most.

Good luck op, but please check on your spouse. Two people I know committed suicide post betrayal another two had planned theirs out. It’s not a Hollywood love story, it’s grim, he’s not the love of your life - he’s a fantasy you are clinging to as it possibly made you feel special / good /desired / worthy. You are not a victim, you are the abuser (of your spouse - I believe cheating is abuse - gaslighting, lying, stripping someone of agency, std risk) and you really do risk losing him.

WorstPaceScenario · 08/04/2026 09:29

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 23:09

I am furious that I let myself get into this situation. Why do men just pick women up and drop them? I'm not just blaming him by the way. I just don't get how men can have one night stands and feel nothing. I've been led on. I'm still tearful tonight. I don't understand why 5 weeks later it feels worse.
i promise im going to get a GP appointment tomorrow, then get myself a referral and go private. It's killing me. Why aren't I strong enough just to move forwards ? I've also never had a ONS.

I do love my husband, but I must admit something feels missing and I don't know what it is. He works hard, good parent , cooks, cleans, we have regular good sex, he isn't selfish in bed. Everything is/was calm (even before this happened) and I even then I felt something was off, but I had a difficult childhood. Think addict parents and that's the part I can't bear to go over in therapy.

Edited

You're not blaming him, but you were led on? The absolute irony of this coming from someone who cheated on their spouse to have this relationship in which you were 'led on'. I don't think you're in a position to cast stones about how someone has conducted themselves in a relationship OP.

I actually usually take the view the people make mistakes and do stupid things, because that's life, and life dishes out the consequences. But your navel-gazing and absolute conviction that somehow you're a victim in this has very quickly eroded any empathy I'd have for someone who's learned a lesson the hard way

SoSadSoSadSoSad · 08/04/2026 09:31

Sorry but this is quite amusing. You cheat on your unsuspecting dh who sounds like a decent enough chap. You get burned. You’re raging.

I don’t believe in karma but I do believe in a good chuckle.

Highlighta · 08/04/2026 09:34

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 23:09

I am furious that I let myself get into this situation. Why do men just pick women up and drop them? I'm not just blaming him by the way. I just don't get how men can have one night stands and feel nothing. I've been led on. I'm still tearful tonight. I don't understand why 5 weeks later it feels worse.
i promise im going to get a GP appointment tomorrow, then get myself a referral and go private. It's killing me. Why aren't I strong enough just to move forwards ? I've also never had a ONS.

I do love my husband, but I must admit something feels missing and I don't know what it is. He works hard, good parent , cooks, cleans, we have regular good sex, he isn't selfish in bed. Everything is/was calm (even before this happened) and I even then I felt something was off, but I had a difficult childhood. Think addict parents and that's the part I can't bear to go over in therapy.

Edited

You definitely need the therapy, and please do not look at it as a short term thing.

You posted two days ago and have had a lot of responses. And as your replies have gone on, you have not shown any remorse for what you have done, you don't even speak of what you have done to your husband or how he is feeling, apart from brushing any topic of him with a throwaway comment.

Even this latest post, you are still not taking any responsibility.
You blame OM for (even though you say you are not but you are) "picking up and dropping women" and also for not falling all about you after you spoke to his partner out of spite and he "feeling nothing"

This is all self inflicted, you are NOT some innocent little victim here.

In the two days of now talking about this, getting what you need to off your chest, still here you are with your fingers in your ears and stamping your foot saying "well what about meeeee".

This thread is just sheer frustration to read, and I really really feel for your husband.

Gloriia · 08/04/2026 09:51

Op, you don't need therapy. You just aren't happy with your dh anymore so are seeking thrills elsewhere.
You married young.
Just split and start dating. You seem to be viewing the fling through rose colored specs. He was not a nice man, he was a liar and a cheat.
There'll be someone else more suited.
Be kind to your dh and let him go, let him have some fun too.

aquashiv · 08/04/2026 09:52

What benefits do you get from closure? You depended on each other, hoping for a passionate relationship, but it seems neither of you was very committed. Maybe figure out what you genuinely want and pursue it. Men can talk shit for hours its meaningless

Thewookiemustgo · 08/04/2026 10:26

PinkyBrain290 · 07/04/2026 23:09

I am furious that I let myself get into this situation. Why do men just pick women up and drop them? I'm not just blaming him by the way. I just don't get how men can have one night stands and feel nothing. I've been led on. I'm still tearful tonight. I don't understand why 5 weeks later it feels worse.
i promise im going to get a GP appointment tomorrow, then get myself a referral and go private. It's killing me. Why aren't I strong enough just to move forwards ? I've also never had a ONS.

I do love my husband, but I must admit something feels missing and I don't know what it is. He works hard, good parent , cooks, cleans, we have regular good sex, he isn't selfish in bed. Everything is/was calm (even before this happened) and I even then I felt something was off, but I had a difficult childhood. Think addict parents and that's the part I can't bear to go over in therapy.

Edited

I could ask why do women pursue men whom they know are married? Or I could ask why do married women sleep with other men?Why do married men sleep with other women?
None of these questions are relevant, because the answer boils down to personal choice at the moment of temptation.
The longer you tell yourself that you were led on/ picked up and dropped etc, the longer you will see yourself as a victim. You’re not. You had choices and agency over your own behaviour and could have stopped at any time. You chose not to. Why? That’s the real question.
The second he fessed up that he was in a relationship you knew he’d lied to you. You knew he was a liar but chose to believe his words. Why?
You berate his behaviour but are a married woman who had a one night stand then messaged that man for three more months. Why? The answer to your problems is in the ‘why’.
You never have control over the behaviour of other adults, but you do have control over your own. You choose what and what not to do. His behaviour was terrible but blame for what happened must be shared. Blame isn’t the issue, why you chose this and why you need it so badly is.
It’s time to get honest with yourself and find out the answer to your first question “Why did I let myself. ….?” That’s where the real gold lies in terms of learning and getting through this. It’s where real positive change lies.
I think it lies somewhere in here:
Your childhood was clearly very difficult and I‘m so sorry, that must have been horrific. As the daughter of two addicts, it is highly likely that you have got an addictive personality. That’s where you need help. You are running away from the real reasons. No shame here, I don’t blame you one bit, it’s very, very scary. Exploring this plus what the affair gave you (it was never about him) is your path back to feeling ok.
This is why you got addicted to the high the affair gave you and why you are still craving your ‘fix’.
You don’t want to explore this in therapy and I don’t blame you one bit, but very gently OP, this is where the void is that you are trying to fill. I think you’ve been aware of this void possiblly for years but lately it’s been hard to ignore for some reason. Maybe the lack of sex made you feel undesirable/ unwanted, which I think is a big trigger for you, given your childhood.
The affair did a great job at doing this, even though it was an unhealthy choice. That’s why you miss it so much.
You recognise that there is nothing wrong with your husband and how he treats you, but can’t put your finger on your unhappiness. I think it lies within you, OP, not in missing the affair, not in the OM or in your husband. Maybe things from the past rise to the surface and you squash them down, afraid to look. No shame in that, you suffered a great deal and have survived, nobody wants to revisit those old wounds.
However:
Children of addictive parents can sometimes feel deep down that they were not good enough for their parents, their love and existence was not enough to stop their parents from their addiction. They might feel neglected and overlooked and that they were not loved enough for their parents to stop their harmful behaviour. The trauma from this is immense and gets carried forward if not dealt with.
The affair gave you validation and recognition, made you feel noticed, special and valued. The rejection hits you hard because the dreaded ‘not good enough’ feelings are triggered all over again.
He didn’t drop you because you’re not good enough, he dropped you because you told his fiancée and if he didn’t drop you his life would go down the toilet. It was always all about him, not you.
Please have a huge think about therapy, I know it would be a very courageous step, it’s obvious you’ve turned squashing this stuff down and avoiding it into an art form to protect yourself since childhood, and there’s no shame there either, it must have been a living nightmare for you.
Remember that therapists know that this stuff is far from easy and a good one would never push hard and would let you go at your own speed, you would still be in control.
As I see it:
You are unhappy, somebody came along and made you feel wanted, so you screwed up and made bad choices, you recognise that and know it’s bad for you, you’re trying to put things right with your husband but happiness still eludes you, so mentally you still cling to the thing you’ve lost that made you feel better about yourself.
You can do one of two things: find another way to fill the void, (not recommended, the void-filling choices are usually very bad for you) or get brave and honest and tackle the void itself.
I think it’s time to stop running from or filling the void with temporary highs, it’s time to get brave and get honest. I wish I could tell you that there’s a quick, easy way to do this (I think that’s why you showed up here) but there isn’t. It’s over to you now to decide to do the bravest and best thing you’ll ever do for yourself, or keep running from the unhappiness and grabbing the next thing to plug the void. It won’t go away on its own and even a good husband and lovely marriage can’t be expected to do that for you.
You’ve got the power to conquer that void OP, you’re braver and stronger than you think. Even as a child you survived and made a success of your life up until now. That’s a real achievement after what you went through. If you could do that as a child, imagine what you can achieve for your mental heath as an adult? Please believe that. I wish you great luck.

ZoeCM · 08/04/2026 13:59

moderate · 08/04/2026 00:33

You're still focusing on the wrong thing.

You should be unable to believe you've let yourself get into a situation in which YOU are chasing dopamine rainbows, but instead you're unable to believe how you've got yourself into a situation in which SOMEONE ELSE has wronged you.

This is very true. OP is still framing this situation as though she's the victim. She really doesn't sound bothered about her husband at all.

SoSadSoSadSoSad · 08/04/2026 14:13

ZoeCM · 08/04/2026 13:59

This is very true. OP is still framing this situation as though she's the victim. She really doesn't sound bothered about her husband at all.

That’s cos she’s not.

AgentJohnson · 08/04/2026 15:27

Closure!!!! What did you think would happen when you told his wife to be? Come on OP, the only thing you are a victim of is your delusional fantasy about this man. You need to get help for yourself because I fear if you don’t, your recklessness will only hurt more people than you already have.

Highonmyownsupply · 08/04/2026 16:04

fatphalange · 08/04/2026 00:58

You were both bored and/wanted attention. That’s it. Wasn’t even a full-on affair. All this upset over something so meaningless.

The fact that she was so upset over “something meaningless” is the very heart of the issue to take into therapy. It’s not the affair as such, it’s the OP’s emotional reaction which is so painful and needs empathy and insight.

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