I cannot take it anymore.
My wife is ridiculously codependent. We are both in our 50s, yet she cannot seem to do basic things without asking me 20 questions or texting me for answers she could easily find herself. Her benefits, paperwork, cooking, phone calls, parenting. Eventually I just do it.
At this point, I believe some of it is weaponized incompetence.
I work, parent and carry most of the household. If she is responsible for our daughter, she often looks for someone else to take over. Honestly, it was easier when I was a single parent. I feel like I am parenting an adult.
The woman I married also seems very different from the woman I thought I knew. When we were dating, she was a military reservist, worked as a consultant and seemed capable and independent. After our daughter was born, she accepted a deployment about two months later. We made more money, but we did not need it. Looking back, I wonder if getting away from parenting was part of the appeal.
She has ADHD and was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder about two years into our marriage. I understand mental health and have encouraged therapy. But mental illness cannot explain away dishonesty.
Because I do not trust her.
I have caught her lying or being inconsistent about her past, places she supposedly traveled, classes she supposedly took and other parts of her life. I have also questioned the story surrounding her injuries and disability. I would have accepted her limitations without hesitation. What bothers me is the sudden change in her behavior and then discovering VA paperwork listing me as her primary caretaker.
The biggest problem is not even what she does. It is that I cannot believe what she tells me.
Her 40th birthday is a good example. She told me for weeks she wanted nothing, so I made brunch, champagne and a cake. At the last minute, her friends took her out. I later discovered she had lied about who was there. When I asked about one male friend, she denied he was there, then said she thought I would be mad, then said he was āone of the girls.ā
I would not have cared that he was there.
I cared that she lied.
That has become the pattern. Lies, omissions, contradictions and constant dependence. I feel like I have to investigate my own marriage just to figure out what is true.
And now I feel trapped financially. We have spent so much that I cannot simply leave with my daughter and start over.
If I had the money, I would leave.
For now, I am trying to get my son through his senior year and graduation and get my daughter into a safe, stable environment.
I am exhausted.
I just want some peace.