Posting Here Simply to Hear What Others Think and Vent

I found out my wife filed for divorce today. I knew things had gotten bad so I started looking into firms and the first firm I called rejected me over conflict of interest. I knew right away what that meant. I was not looking to file for divorce just start to get help or advice since we were agreeing to try therapy first.

Two things you need to know up front. 1: We have a 21 month old baby. 2: I have never touched her in anger. I have never hit, pushed, slapped or even blocked her path. I have yelled at her 4 or 5 times in the 6 years we've been together. She has yelled at me well into the hundreds.

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Her legitimate grievances:

I got fat, leading to a lack of intimacy, leading me to be unhappy with a lack of intimacy and you see the circle here.

I struggle with alcohol. Due to physical pain and loss I pretty much became an alcoholic, but I joined fight camp, took up bjj, have a home gym setup and I'm focusing on work/business. I don't do the hard stuff, never have, just beer and before the incident that lead us here I had actually dropped the booze. I had gone days without drinking and was on a good track.

I contest this one, but apparently I hold money over her. I believe it is my duty to care for her. She is disabled, she could work, but it triggers seizures because of the stress so we made a pact that she takes care of the house and I make the money. However I also pay her child support from a previous marriage along with everything else. I want to talk about how I don't feel appreciated and about how paying that child support to a guy who is just using it for drugs kind of hurts me. She explodes if I even touch on it.

I have anger issues. I am in therapy and I know this one. Because the world is not a certain way that I want it to be I get mad, according to my therapist. I get mad at other drivers, I got really mad at the DMV ladies, if someone is stupid I get mad and if I am drinking then she picks a fight I dont know when to stop being mad. I also dont let her cool down cause I want to keep talking or arguing etc. I was also in the army so I am dealing with some of that which does make me angry.

Im not adventurous enough with sexual stuff. Kind of funny because I thought the same thing of her. I bought a sex game, asked her to do some exercises to explore stuff etc. Ive made several efforts. So we both think the other is boring, that sucks and she wont hear my side. I think Im not dominate enough. Im more of an asker and less of a taker where she kind of wants to be handled roughly, which I am open, but I need to be shown the way. Super conservative upbringings dont just go away.

When we first met she had really bad hygiene. Her big sister was an influence and she has horrible meth teeth. My wife actually told me she was going to let her teeth rot out and get false ones surgically to which I put an immediate stop and reversal. Shes since has gone to a dentist, gotten a cleaning, gotten antibiotics and prescription everything. She also didnt shower, even today shell go to the gym, come home change clothes and go out to eat or something then shower at night. Or even worse say shes tired and will shower the next night. She originally wouldnt shower for 3 days to a week. Cant win them all. Other more intimate areas also needed attention. However I waited a long time to even touch on this, but apparently when I did it was a jerk move. Now she is holding that against me, but I thought I was helping.

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My grievances:

She cheated on me. Text came through on her car dashboard one night after dinner from a man I didnt know. Now Im not one to care, but her hiding talking to someone hurt. She used to never hide her phone from me and all was wide open no secrets then one day that phone became sacred and untouchable. She tried to say this guy is her best friend from several years before we met, except 6 years of knowing each other I never heard his name and never met the dude.

She does not work, does not cook or clean. Our agreement was she cares for the house I make the money. Ive hired maids or her mom will come visit and clean. Ive cleaned more than her. She doesnt even care for the baby. The baby will wake up at 7, but shell sleep until 11. I usually just go get the baby, but Ive timed this. Now its not everyday, but it happens. She tells the doctor she bathes the baby every other day, but she doesnt, Ive said stuff and now shes very aware of me tracking this stuff.

No intimacy. Not much to say here. I pay her child support from a previous relationship and I get hate in return. She rejects me. Ive never had BBs more than with her, or ever like this. Im scared to attempt to simply hold her hand.

The fact that I pay her child support from a previous marriage. I cant even talk to her about this before she starts screaming and just repeating something while yelling. I just want to talk about my feelings regarding the child support stuff. I feel like less of a man because of it. There is way more there like driving to get her kid which turned into me having to fly her kid 3 times per year. These days those flights are not cheap. This isnt a neighboring state situation this is me paying to fly them both 6 times both ways across half the US. I just want to talk about it. Spending over 10k per year or even more as prices rise is hard and impacts my retirement schemes.

I paid off all her debts not that long ago and now shes filing. She also got super fit, stopped wanting intimacy and is filing. She pushed me to get a house, to move to a new state where her family is. She was pushing hard to get added to all of my bank accounts. We have a joint account for the house and bills etc, but I have my own account that she kept trying to get on. She also really wanted on the mortgage, just through pure laziness that never happened.

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The Divorce:

She wants it all. She is going for the house, which is solely in my name, that I got with my VA loan. She wants my baby. She wants money. She was going to blind side me. She hasnt worked in a few years. She has a CPS case on her from years ago, its closed. She has a teenage son that she rejects because he is severely disabled. She lost him to CPS and a family member has custody. She has a daughter, the one I pay child support for, that she lost custody of to the father. Now shes coming for my baby.

I make a damn fair bit of money so I can fight for a long time. I have no idea who is financing her, our meager 15K shared account cant be what shes relying on. Her credit also cant be it. No fling boyfriend is going to pay very much and her family hates her. I make all the money and I am fine taking care of her if she would just talk to me. She must have something on me, but I cant imagine what apart from I said some mean stuff. I dont break the law or anything. I think my the fact that Ive struggled with depression and suicide is gonna get me. She said shell be using that against me along with my anger.

I am scared and hurt. I am a member of a fraternal order who is helping with attorneys and most of the judges in town are in some way affiliated with our brotherhood, but Im still so dang scared. I dont want this. Im not a POS I just have a lot to work on. Everytime I came to her she said Im not an F-ing therapist go talk to a therapist. I dont care about my money, my time or anything other than our baby. I dont want her to come from a broken home. I want her to be happy. I would do anything to be a better man or even a real man at this point. I am truly lost here.

Posted Mar 16, 2023, 5:37 AM UTC

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Man that's a long read. I'm going to make my reply short. That last paragraph specifically the last sentence or two hit home with me. My situation was much like yours. It may not feel like it but this IS your time to be a man. Show your daughter it's not okay to treat anyone the way her mother treats you, let alone her future spouse. Your daughter watching her mom disrespect her dad is in a way it's own trauma. She'll adapt and be happy, you'll move on to a better version of yourself guaranteed. Let her go!!!

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Error-OriginalOP•

Thank you. It all happened today so I am just venting. I did look back on it and realize its super long, but that was me cutting content haha.

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Daddy_data_nerd•

Ok, lot to unpack here.

You've got a VA loan, so that tells me you were military. Well brother, from one prior service to another. It's time to put on your battle rattle and go to war.

Your can't save or help her now.l, she's now the enemy. Like everyone here has said, stop paying HER child support. That's her bill and if she can't pay it, that's HER problem.

You tried to be a white knight, now it's time to be the dark knight.

Start setting and enforcing your boundaries. Don't react to her provocations.

DON'T HAVE ANY SEX WITH HER EVEN IF SHE INITIATES. You don't want a false SA charge or worse an unwanted pregnancy.

Listen to your lawyer, not your friends or family.

Be strong, you can do this.

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Error-OriginalOP•

This is a battle I didnt want, dont deserve and am terrified to engage in. Thanks for the support on this.

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Daddy_data_nerd•

It never is.

But now it's upon you.

When I served my ex-wife I was scared for my life. I had no idea what would happen. I spent two days shaking in my boots. But, it turned out better than I thought because she reacted with, "I knew it."

I choose to be strong for my son's because they need it.

Good luck and we're here if you need us.

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No_Analyst_9131•

I am going to echo what a lot of people here say: stop being a "nice guy" and start playing dirty.

There is no reason for you to be paying child support for her previous kid, stop this as of yesterday. Make sure any automatic payments that were set up from your accounts are stopped, and tell her that you are no longer paying her child support bills. Next, immediately file to get everything for yourself, house, bank accounts, assets, and full custody of your child. You DO NOT want to be on the back foot, even for a mess like her where you easily can bring up her past and use it against her (meth use, lack of job, etc); make sure that you also bring these up in the filing when you ask for everything. Don't give her anything, tell her from now on she is to only speak with you via your lawyer, and also file a TRO against her TODAY and make sure your child is going to be with you and not her. Give up on any feelings you might have about not wanting "to hurt her" because if you don't, you will find you are being used as her personal bank.

Finally, make sure you take care of yourself. Go to the gym, keep seeing your therapist, and also make sure you do things that make you happy (as long as it isn't having sex with her; absolute no no).

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P.S. You might be able to beat her to filing for everything if you have a lawyer that is willing to let you bring all the completed paperwork in yourself. If you have to take the day off to do so, do it. The paperwork around your child's custody is absolutely essential to get in before her, since Family Courts are massively in favor of even the shitiest of mothers, and you need them seeing you filed for child custody and everything else first.

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Error-OriginalOP•

She had me on the filing first thing. She filed Thursday of last week. I found out yesterday while shopping around for firms and when they said conflict of interest I just about died. So she has a week on me and I am having a hard time even getting that initial consultation. I have one setup for next Wednesday and one for tomorrow. Now the lady I talked to yesterday did say her case had not hit the network yet, but still I am already behind as she intended to blind side me.

I cant just stop paying because that child support is coming out of a joint account we setup for bills and household needs as well as paying down some debts so about 60 or 70 % of my income goes there. The rest dumps into my own account. The lady at the first attorneys office said not to move money at all, dont stop my direct deposits etc.

I do believe this was planned from the beginning. She saw a guy with a decent paycheck and a bright future. Everything just fell so perfectly into place for her. I do greatly appreciate all of the support I am receiving because this is the hardest thing Ive ever gone through.

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No_Analyst_9131•

Get a new account for yourself and change all your income to that account only. I shouldn't have to say it again, but stop paying her child support bill for her, FULL STOP. I have no idea why anyone would ever pay someone else's child support, even if you "love" them. The first attorney is representing your STBX, it doesn't matter what she says, get your own account and have your paycheck 100% go there. The only thing YOU need to pay for is your house, and utilities along with your bills.

You will have to show all your financial accounts anyways, any lawyer worth their salt would be able to argue that you needed to ensure that your bills were being paid, and that you couldn't trust your STBX to not outright steal your money.

Sorry for the tough love, but you need to stop being stupid and letting the "lovey" feelings affect your thinking, this is outright war, and if you don't take it seriously, you are going to be fucked sideways with a 500 grit sandpaper bat.

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I'll lay out some steps to move forward. Focus on yourself first. You'll hear the "do everything for your kid" remarks but ultimately, you can only provide for your kid mentally, physically and financially when you focus on yourself first. Let her go. Mentally prepare to grieve her as if she is dead. The person you thought you loved is gone. Now's the time to be selfish and make moves to protect yourself. It is now a business deal. Stop paying those expenses for her child support. You're aware of her patterns and past. Stop asking her and start doing. Be calm, cool and collected. Start recording or nanny cam if you can in your state. Most likely you might face a TRO soon. She has been through the divorce court before but don't worry, just prepare. It's going to be a long process. Don't move out. Seperate and make space for yourself in your home and set firm boundaries. Become stoic. Don't give her any fuel for her fire. Assume you are being recorded also. Split the joint account in half and save your half. She will drain it dry. Technically, if you haven't filed yet, everything she does is under the pretense of you guys still being married and you won't see any repercussions when she does. Don't mean to sound harsh, but she doesn't care about you. It's okay to care about her. But don't fall on your sword and give into her demands or emotions. File. Don't wait. You don't need a lawyer even to start the dissolution of marriage. It starts the precedent and holds everything accountable as post separation if she racks up debts or drains the account. I could go on but start really researching, get a good attorney and go back through the divorce_men group for helping advice. Wish you the best man, you will get through this. Respect yourself and be easy on yourself. I had alot of fears as well and it really hindered my priorities to move forward. After she moved out, the ability to see clearly was 20/20. Take it day by day but look forward to the future goals. Just to edit. If you're not 100% sure she filed yet, get a lawyer to look into the courts. Mine told me before I ever saw the paperwork. Similarly, I was only talking to a lawyer and she filed without one and later picked one up

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Error-OriginalOP•

Wow, thank you. I had no idea what a TRO is and had to look that up. Thats scary stuff. I also did not know I could file without an attorney. I guess she did whatever it takes to get that particular firm locked in, fill out an intake form or whatever they call it, and now shes their client. The lady I talked to at my selected firm said the filing was not yet on the network. She filed last Thursday, 3/9.

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Jbr74•

I had no idea what a TRO is

Said 10,000 other guys pre-separation here also, don't worry.

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TakeBackWhat•

Masons? Shriners? Kappas? Hells Angels?

Re: fraternal order

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Error-OriginalOP•

The first two.

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Jbr74•

Damn kinda hoping it would be the last one. :)

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TakeBackWhat•

Appreciate ya!

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Myself like you and many others married someone that portrayed a good housewife but after marriage they turned into lazy slobs while we’re out here struggling to provide for our family while they do nothing. It’s good you realized it and are wanting to get out just know that you’re not alone. And the part about u paying her child support and all her debts is enough just to leave alone, she’s using you there is no love….

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Error-OriginalOP•

The attorneys office told me not to do anything with money. I would cut the direct deposits to that account and drain it, but that would apparently be really bad. She can bankroll child support on her lines of credit for quite a while so no looking forward to an arrest there anyway. Plus I suspect someone is funding her.

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RichardCleveland•

Wow... I was thinking maybe I wrote this myself... we are going through SO MANY of the same things right now. I don't have young children anymore, but otherwise everything you listed I can relate to. I paid off her debts, she doesn't work. I got lucky I guess that she does keep the house up though. But she is aiming for the fucking fences now... wants the house, car, and enough money to support herself. She thinks that her life shouldn't have to change... even though SHE IS the one who wants a divorce... it's fucking infuriating.

But ya she stopped all intimacy about three weeks prior to drooping the D bomb on me. Including hugs, casual kisses etc. I have spent countless hours trying to find something on my wife. As the entire thing is suspicious as hell, but yet no luck. She says she wants to "work on" our marriage now, but we are still strangers in our home. I have started to prepare for the worst now.

Our sex life also took a "boring" dive over the years. I brought up a few vanilla things just for fun and she got extremely pissed over it. Acted like she no longer was good enough for me. Ugh.

That entire hygiene thing is horrifying though... no idea how you dealt with that. O.o

Anyhow, I wish you the best. At the very least keep in mind that you are NOT alone. A lot of people end up in these exact situations.

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Error-OriginalOP•

Well fixing her hygiene is a huge part of why she hates me, shes brings it up all the time. You really shouldnt try to change people at all Ive learned. She was gonna let her teeth rot out. Unbelievable all because she idolizes her sister and her sister is pure evil talking her into that. Oh yea and the sister ended up reversing course and working on her teeth. Her sister is truly evil, her husband is whipped and I mean he cant go pee without asking her. She once put a knife to him, took all his money, made him strip naked and dropped him in the woods. He makes the vaste majority of the money and she controls all of it. Makes him pack food while hes away at work. She once asked for my leftovers cause she was going to make them part of his work lunch for the week. Her son, not his, tells him hell kill him and has put a gun to him.

I really hate to be this way, but men need intimacy. We need it not want. When you arent communicating and not fooling around regularly it adds up. Yea no hugs nothing ever. Just angry all the time tells me to shut up if Im telling a joke or talking about something she doesnt want to hear. She told her grandma to shut up several times. Its nuts. Oh and she wanted dogs so badly, I love dogs, but was mourning a loss, yet she hates all three of our dogs. Kicks them calls them stupid locks them in the kennel too early even if Im still up and about.

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Jbr74•

And "she" filed for divorce, she's doing you a f'ing favor. And if she's is cheating on you with someone else, shake that man's hand and then pity that mother f'er.

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Error-OriginalOP•

Hahaha, awesome point. I was dating just a little below my league, but she caught me in a low point back then.

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RichardCleveland•

That is a pure fucking nightmare to deal with. Jesus you are going to feel SO MUCH better once it's over. It sounds like you get a bonus of dropping her toxic family also.

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