Hello,
I need help. This is my first marriage and i am very scared it might end.
I have been with my wife for over a decade ( 6years dating / 4 years married) and we have been madly in love for a long time. She has always been my pillar stone and we have always worked together at achieving what we do. However, things have changed.
We decided that starting this summer we would try for kids. She is 31 and I am 34. Around Mother's Day, she went weird on me. She claimed that she was afraid of me and thought i would physically harm her. Moreover, she said that she felt that i belittled her and was critical over her cooking, weight, clothing, etc. Furthermore, she stated that she didn't think that I could not be a kind husband to her and our future child if I am not kind to myself. I mean all of these fears popped up and it was scary. The worst part of it is that she is on Lexapro ( a form of Prozac) and has bulimia. I am uncertain if she is simply flipping out due to the drugs or is really worried in our reality. Bulemia is a horrible disease and i have been with her through every part of it.
Mind you, I have never touched my wife in an abusive way either. Moreover, I do get angry over the burnt toast, so to speak, once in a while, but i never call her bad things or ridicule her. She told me she loves me and that she wants to save our marriage. However, she needs her "space" ( stay with her parents/sister) for a little while to clear her head.
Now about giving her her space, she told me she wants to get away to clear her head. She wants to be 100% sure that our marriage and finances can handle having a child. She wants to miss me again. She wants to miss our marriage again. Also, she has assured me there is not having an affair. She has grown numb to me becuase of my critical behaviour and wants things to get better between us. Ultimately, she wishes to save the marriage but she needs time to heal from all the verbal abuse I have given her.
Anyhow, she left 12 days ago and said that she will see me again. She said she will be gone for a while and that she loves me. Thereafter, she called me twice to check in with me. Her having her space also means working out 5x a week, going out with girlfriends on the weeknds and trying to get as much attention as possible. Again, another sign of her disease lashing out?
Through the course of the week she did come back and grab more clothes and ALL her jewelry. We hardly talk and her parents tell me to be patient. Her parents say give it a month and go to therapy so you guys can work things out.
Guys, I am very hurt here. I love my wife and do not want a divorce. I am a product of a broken home and my father has remarried 4X. So you can say i have my issues. Truth is my wife has done alot to hurt me too, but i have always forgiven her. Moreover, i have never physically harmed her or verabally abused her.
We have had 1 session so far and she was all angry and said her focus is on herself and not the marriage and nothing else. This was with my therapist. Which we both decided later that we should get a tough therapist to work things out between us ( someone we both do not know)
Anyways, some thoughts or some sort of hope would be nice. This is the first time i have experienced something like this and need to know a few things.
Is asking for space normal?
Is getting to a divorce difficult?
Am i overreacting?
Is going to marriage counseling a good sign for hope?
thanks for reading.