not again - 01/22/06 12:41 PM
I just found out two weeks ago yesterday. But this is not the first time. Been married 23 years to a man, for some reason, that I deeply love. Ten years ago he came to me telling me how he had fallen in love with a co-worker. We had just built the house of our dreams on nine lovely acres in the country. I was a stay-at-home mom with three great boys. Educated, I was getting back in the groove by teaching at a local community college. Lots of work preparing classes, getting the kids adjusted, longer commute, etc. It took a year of therapy, three years of doubts, we read all of Dr. Hartley's materials (they help, but more about this later)for me to get over the hurt, anger, pain, rejection, and feelings of failure. Now my youngest is now in HS, my older ones in college. I work full time and took on extra assignments to pay the bills. Very busy. Found emails, love poems, etc while cleaning up computer files while he was out of town. On a whim, he contacted his first girlfriend - started with lunches, etc. So, here we go again. This time is a not as bad - partly due to the fact that I immediately went to my physician and she gave me some medication to help with the anxiety. It really does help me talk calmly to my husband about it.
This is my personal opinion on the whole subject. Affairs happen because of the shortcomings of the betrayer. His needs her needs, give and take, policy of joint agreement, policy of honesty - they're all great books to read to learn how to communicate, respect, and love one another. They help forge a bond where you can see your partner more clearly. But I read a great review while searching amazon.com for books (again!) on the subject, words that I could finally identify with. One review(for a book written by Brown)had this to say:
"The notion that infidelity always reveals somethng about the marriage continues to impose on couples demands that no one in any other realm of health care would countenance. That an affair has occurred obviously means that the marriage was vulnerable. That the pattern of marital interaction allowed it to happen. That does not mean that the affair is a function of that pattern.....Sometimes we choose dishonorable ways of feeling better because of our own shortcomings. This is not a shortcoming of your marriage. Nothing ever makes an individual trustworthy except his or her own good character. An affair need not show anything wrong with the marriage, but it ALWAYS shows unreliable character - a person who does not keep promises and engages in deceit is, by definition, unreliable. Yes, you might be able to decrease the partner's unhappiness; then THEN YOU WILL HAVE TAKEN THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR KEEPING THE PARTNER HAPPY ENOUGH THAT HE OR SHE WON'T DO WHAT THEY SHOULD NEVER BE WILLING TO DO ANYWAY"
Not that I am a perfect angel - I am not. I am an extrovert and analytical. He is an introvert and very feeling. Somehow the personalities compliment each other and I feel he completes me. I am also perfectionist and people pleaser, and that combination can make me a nervous wreck and drive him nuts! However, when I behave in ways he doesn't like, he has three choices. He can tell me to cut it out (remind me that I'm engaging in a love buster). He can help me through it. Or he can go off with the guys to get away for a while. But my behavior does not give him license to lie and cheat. Now I have a huge decision to make because I told him in no uncertain terms that his infidelity was not acceptable to me and that if it happened again, I would have to end it. Well, saying and doing are two different things.
Does this ring home? I think the betrayer needs to find out why they aren't comfortable with themselves. We went through therapy last time and it helped me understand how to communicate better with my life-partner, but it didn't get to the core of why my husband would risk so much to satisfy a "need" in him. He says he loves me - and has finally recognized that he is "searching" for something, but he doesn't know what that is. Be careful of therapists who play the blame game, or allow you to bring up past hurts - it is not helpful. Find a MC that will keep you in the here and now, and will eventually want to talk to your husband alone about why he is not comfortable with who he is and tries to help him communicate with himself - the lack of which manifests in risky behavior.
This is my personal opinion on the whole subject. Affairs happen because of the shortcomings of the betrayer. His needs her needs, give and take, policy of joint agreement, policy of honesty - they're all great books to read to learn how to communicate, respect, and love one another. They help forge a bond where you can see your partner more clearly. But I read a great review while searching amazon.com for books (again!) on the subject, words that I could finally identify with. One review(for a book written by Brown)had this to say:
"The notion that infidelity always reveals somethng about the marriage continues to impose on couples demands that no one in any other realm of health care would countenance. That an affair has occurred obviously means that the marriage was vulnerable. That the pattern of marital interaction allowed it to happen. That does not mean that the affair is a function of that pattern.....Sometimes we choose dishonorable ways of feeling better because of our own shortcomings. This is not a shortcoming of your marriage. Nothing ever makes an individual trustworthy except his or her own good character. An affair need not show anything wrong with the marriage, but it ALWAYS shows unreliable character - a person who does not keep promises and engages in deceit is, by definition, unreliable. Yes, you might be able to decrease the partner's unhappiness; then THEN YOU WILL HAVE TAKEN THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR KEEPING THE PARTNER HAPPY ENOUGH THAT HE OR SHE WON'T DO WHAT THEY SHOULD NEVER BE WILLING TO DO ANYWAY"
Not that I am a perfect angel - I am not. I am an extrovert and analytical. He is an introvert and very feeling. Somehow the personalities compliment each other and I feel he completes me. I am also perfectionist and people pleaser, and that combination can make me a nervous wreck and drive him nuts! However, when I behave in ways he doesn't like, he has three choices. He can tell me to cut it out (remind me that I'm engaging in a love buster). He can help me through it. Or he can go off with the guys to get away for a while. But my behavior does not give him license to lie and cheat. Now I have a huge decision to make because I told him in no uncertain terms that his infidelity was not acceptable to me and that if it happened again, I would have to end it. Well, saying and doing are two different things.
Does this ring home? I think the betrayer needs to find out why they aren't comfortable with themselves. We went through therapy last time and it helped me understand how to communicate better with my life-partner, but it didn't get to the core of why my husband would risk so much to satisfy a "need" in him. He says he loves me - and has finally recognized that he is "searching" for something, but he doesn't know what that is. Be careful of therapists who play the blame game, or allow you to bring up past hurts - it is not helpful. Find a MC that will keep you in the here and now, and will eventually want to talk to your husband alone about why he is not comfortable with who he is and tries to help him communicate with himself - the lack of which manifests in risky behavior.