I am a 36-year-old woman who deeply valued the sanctity of marriage. I chose my husband carefully, valuing his polite nature, strong character, and religious values over material wealth, believing I had found a partner who aligned with my values.However, shortly after the marriage, I noticed red flags. His family seemed overly focused on my financial status, I overlooked all the taunts , disrespect everything initially, believing that as long as my husband was good to me, I could adjust. I treated his family as my own, I always buys them thoughtful gifts but that were never acknowledged or appreciated, even though my husband has never bought me any gifts to date. Despite this, I felt undeserving of their negativity.A few weeks into the marriage, I realized that my husband’s interest was also more about my financial contributions than love. He avoided responsibility and showed little concern for our future. Although he presents himself as a man of strong religious values, these values disappear when financial and cultural issues arise. He treats me like an outsider, and our relationship feels more like that of roommates.When I began to take a stand, things worsened. He failed to validate my emotions, frequently starting arguments and using hurtful language. He turns into something else during arguments, which scares me. Most of the time he treats me poorly, I even had to beg for his time . He also shares our private matters with his family, creating tension and emboldening their disrespect. Despite my efforts to bridge the gap, he remained silent when his mother disrespected me infrontof him, failing to defend me.My growing insecurity about losing my job, which is crucial for financial stability, has driven me to focus more on my career, even though I once prioritized family over everything.After almost 3 years of trying, I find myself in a situation I never imagined. The love and respect I hoped for are absent, and separation, once unthinkable, now seems possible. One part of me has accepted remaining alone forever rather than compromising my values or having children with such a man, while another part still hopes he might change if he starts loving me truly, despite doubts he will ever stand up for me as he only wants to be a good son.Should I stay in this marriage and work through the issues, or is it time to leave?
Ans: Dear Anonymous,
Ask yourself:
What if I stay in this marriage, what will gain and what will I lose?
What if I walk out of this marriage, what will I gain and what will I lose?
Given that you have seen the Red Flags and for reasons, you still are left wondering what you should be doing...Of course, if you feel that things might improve, your husband first needs to acknowledge that he has to change and also understand why he has to change. Right now, the way you describe, he seems to be on his own trip behaving oddly enough and not as a husband must. Do what needs to be done for him to realize this and also for the sake of your own sanity, do put a timeline to this entire thing, so that your patience is not tested. After that, you will have known that you have everything and more in order for him to realize and change and then taking decisions become easier and purposeful
All the best!
Anu Krishna
Mind Coach|NLP Trainer|Author
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