I don’t really know who to talk to right now and posting here seems a good idea.

So, like the title says, I think my marriage is over. For context: Me (F42) and my wife have been married for 9 years. We got married not even a year into our relationship and I had no idea back then that I had ADHD. Did we get married too soon? Yes and no. The problems didn’t really start until around year 5, so even if we had gotten married after, say, three years, the outcome would have been the same.

Around two and a half years ago my wife suggested that I may have ADHD after things had started getting worse and worse. But although I was open to the idea it took me a year to get off my butt and get diagnosed and start treatment. Precious time that I wasted.

Now I’ve been on meds for a year and in therapy for around 9 months. Some things have gotten better but the core problem remains: My wife feels responsible for everything, is shouldering pretty much all the mental load and I seem to be unable to become the reliable adult partner that she needs. ADHD or the way I handle it has completely eroded our marriage and the love we had between us. My wife feels exhausted and trapped and I feel helpless because I feel like I maybe moved up a level or two in my “adulting skills” but I’d need to be a Level 10 to make our marriage work. Or make any marriage work, for that matter.

I feel extremely sad. I feel sad about the suffering I have caused my wife, who really tried to stick it out. Probably longer than she should have for her own good. Sad because I’ve been trying really hard and I see some people who have ADHD but who also seem to have an “overachiever personality” and they have their shit together so much more than I do. Sad because I wasted a whole year doing nothing. Sad because we used to be so happy together and used to love each other so much and now all that seems to be left is bitterness and resentment.

😢

Edit: Thank you so much to everyone who has has already commented and shared kind words with me.

My wife and I have been going over this many many times. I know what she needs and I am trying and a feel fucking sad about the fact that, maybe, we just can’t make it work. But I also realize I’m starting to reach a point where being on my own is beginning to sound liberating. I’ve never had a problem with being single and I feel like at least then there isn’t anyone I can disappoint anymore. It’s just me and if I fuck up the only person having to face the consequences is me.

I just feel really bad because I feel I have cost my wife so much. She would have wanted to have kids and I’ve always been on the fence about it. I used to absolutely not want to have kids when we met, then kinda came around to the idea (when you’re super in love it does become a kinda wonderful idea) but then gradually starting feeling more and more uncertain. And now I’m at a point where, regardless of whether or not I want to have kids (I don’t have a desire to have them but could imagine having them) I don’t think I’m capable of raising kids. If we had broken up sooner my wife might have had a better chance at having kids with someone else.

I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been feeling awful myself. I feel like I’m under constant pressure because I want to “prove myself” and the more I worry about fucking up the more tense I get. The best moment of the day is when I go to bed because then I don’t have to do anything for the next 8 hours, just rest and sleep. Can’t mistakey if not awakey :P

And our relationship has been deteriorating for so long and we’ve both become so fed up with each other. My wife is fed up with me because I’m not who she needs me to be and I’m fed up with her because I feel like even if I try to manage something myself, take care of something myself, I don’t do it the right way. Sometimes it really isn’t (last week I almost set the oven on fire) but sometimes it’s just a minor thing.

Maybe, as sad as it is, we’re better off apart and would be happier on own own / with someone else.

  • Petter1@discuss.tchncs.de
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    1 day ago

    Maybe use an LLM to read this…

    Edit: I did ask LLM to rewrite it so it is more understandable, for raw version see below:

    I’m in a similar situation, just with a 6-year-old child. Our relationship has gone through several cycles: things work for a while, her workload gets heavier, everything builds up, and eventually it becomes too much and we hit a crisis.

    After those moments, I try hard to stay organized and keep things running. But suddenly a week comes where I lose all structure, have no plan, things stay undone, and tasks pile up again.

    Last year I messed up by taking drugs at parties and not telling her. We’re not anti-drug in general, but the fact that I hid it caused her a lot of pain. Now I’m trying hard again, but since yesterday I’m feeling mild burnout symptoms. My opinions keep shifting too fast, so I struggle to express them clearly.

    I don’t know if this helps you directly, but you’re definitely not alone. Many couples with ADHD face the same pattern. I hope you don’t have financial stress, and maybe showing her how other ADHD couples struggle could help both of you feel less isolated. Just try not to use ADHD as a permission to give up — getting organized is hard, but staying organized is even harder.

    We’re planning to define our responsibilities clearly. We now use separate calendars so each of us knows exactly what they are responsible for. We’re still working on the household tasks too.

    What helps me is keeping one big “dump list” to capture everything — I use Apple Reminders. Then, at a regular time, I sort the tasks into categories (household, family, personal, hobby project, startup group) and rearrange them by priority. With this system, I can create time blocks for each category and simply work from the top down.

    Financially we also need changes. I thought my spending was controlled, but it wasn’t. So I’m planning an analysis of our expenses and will set up one main family account for income, plus two small accounts for ad-hoc spending (snacks, lunch, Pokémon cards, raves, etc.). Each month, a set amount will move from the main account to these smaller ones.

    Finally, I’ll organize my recurring household tasks in the reminder system too, so she won’t need to remind me anymore.

    😃✌🏻

    Raw:

    I am in a similar situation, but with a 6 year old child…

    With our relationship it happened multiple cycles so far

    Things kinda work, workload of her hets higher and higher and it builds up until it is too much and we have a situation

    After such situations i try hard to keep stuff going, in my mind, planned etc

    And suddenly there starts a week, where I have nonplan what I shoud do und things keep undone and task pile up again

    I fucked up last year by taking drugs at partys and did not tell her (we are both not anti-drugs per general, but I did not tell her) so now i have caused so much pain

    And bow i try hard again, but since yesterday I have weak burn-out symptoms again

    And I flip between different opinions, can’t say my explicit opinions, as they change too fast

    Ehh

    Well, I don’t really know how this could help you, but at least it shows, that you’re not alone, there are many many many people with exactly this same situation, more or less

    Hope you have no financial struggles, and maybe show her how others ADHS couples have same struggles

    Just try hard not to use it as permission to get lazy, it is hard to get organised, but way harder to stay organised

    I plan to define with her clearly who has which responsibilities and we have now not one shared calendar but one for each, so we can define responsibility for events clearly

    We are still working on the houshold topics and stuff

    But what I think really helps, is to have a list of stuff to remember to dumb everything in. For me it is an apple reminder list

    Than i have a regular time frame where I sort those task into categories (household, for family, for me, for my hobby project with friends, my startup group) and sort them by priority from top to bottom

    With having such list I now can create time frames that are mapped to each of those lists and when such a time frame comes i can just work from top to bottom

    Money wise, we need adjustments as well, because my spending seems controlled to me but turns out, is not. So here I will create an analysis on what spending we have and set up a main money storage for family spending where earned money flows in and two money storage for ad-hoc spending like snak or lunch or Pokemon cards or raves etc. Where depending on calculating i still have to do each month flows a bit from main storage of money.

    Hope that solves

    Ahh and in the reminder list inplan to organise my repeating houshold tasks as well, so that she won’t have to remind me in the future

    😃✌🏻

    • cinnamon@lemmy.cafeOP
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      23 hours ago

      Thank you so much, this is great advice.

      But I think it may already be too late for us. We’ve been on the brink of breaking up before and my wife hasn’t been happy in our marriage in a long time. Last week she told me this once again and that she’s currently under too much pressure (other things going on in her life) to make any decisions but basically thinking about ending things. And then two days later we had an ugly fight and I think… I think it’s too late.

      • Petter1@discuss.tchncs.de
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        10 hours ago

        Those points are valid as well when you are on your own

        There is just nobody telling you to get your shit together

        Sorry, strong words, but i tell them to myself as well

        If you are alone with this syndrome, there is risk, that you procrastinate such important tasks and nobody is setting up a deadline, or you just learn to ignore deadlines and accept fate, which can, of course work out, but mostly isn’t, and yea, I guess you can imagine where you would most likely end up

        Edit: I have enough friends who went that way, and it is sad to watch. First I didn’t see, but events in the last year together with eye-opening talks with my girlfriend has shown it to me, has shown me, that if I were on my own, I probably went that way as well…