My marriage rocks... NOT

So we started a marriage course last night called My Marriage Rocks. It was really uncomfortable for me, even though I have been the one pushing for us to attend some sort of seminar. Last night the discussion was around myths and marriage - the guy had some interesting stuff to say. He spoke about how we shouldn't encourage the culture of "falling in love" because if you can fall in love, you can fall out of love. Instead he advocated that people, should grow in love together. Slowly and overtime, so that by the time you have been together for 20 yrs - you should love your partner more, than when we first started going out. He spoke about how we compartmentalise our partners into roles i.e. wife, housekeeper, sexual partner, friend etc and over time, we only start relating to our partner on one level -either as just the wife or husband. All other roles are given for other people to fill. So someone else becomes the sexual partner, someone else becomes the best friend. I was honest enough in my own self reflection to acknowledge, that my husband wasn't the only one who did this in our marriage. I did it to- to a lesser degree. We were bored...

He spoke about how what we see growing up, influences how we believe marriage should be. Well my husband had a womanising father and was emotionally unavailable to his mom, and true as bob, my husband is the same. Same could be said for me...my father stayed with my mom even though she has become severly obese, to the extent that she can't walk properly anymore- he stayed. Maybe I thought my husband would be the same...that it wouldn't matter how weight I gained, that he would be faithful and love me. Of course, he denies my weight has anything to do with it- but I was literally double the girl he met. I jiggle in all the wrong places and my double chin is unfortunate to say the least. He tried again last night to tell me that looks don't count - but thats what people say to ugly people. I know looks count and more so to men because they are visual creatures.

And then he gave us an assignment - women need to create a poster for their husbands and say something nice on it and men have to find a rock and write something on it for their wives. I was uncomfortable to say the least. We have didn't celebrate our wedding anniversary, we don't say I love you anymore and now we need to do something good to each other. I was tempted to tell my husband that I am not going back, that I am not ready for this - but I honestly don't know if I will ever be ready. So I will trust the process and see what happens, as awkward as it feels.

After the class, we went for coffee and spoke for a little bit about stuff, we haven't spoken about in a while. We spoke about his addiction and how his recovery is going. We spoke about his feelings around me asking for another lie detector test. It was the first time we had connected in a while and it felt...ok.

I don't know what I am going to put on my poster :-( Putting yourself out there is hard...we'll see what happens.

Start weight: 110.6
Current weight 103
Lost: 7.6 kgs

#5 things I can't say out loud

It feels like someone kicked you in the stomach, feels like your heart stopped beating, feels like that dream you know the one when you are falling and you want so desperately to wake up before you hit the ground but its all out of your control, you cant trust anything anymore, no one is who they say they are, your life is changed forever, and the only thing to come out of the whole ugly experience is no one will be able to break your heart like that again.-Catherine Frazier:

Yeah, I don't think so pal...

Everyone betrays you in the end.Everyone.

Valentines day came and went. He cooked a really great romantic 3 course Italian meal - not a single word of love was said and quite frankly I was relieved. I didn't have to tell him to jump off a cliff and I didn't have to pretend that I was okay. The day simply existed and it was brutally honest in its reflection of our dysfunction. I didn't put any effort into the day, except not to tell him to shove it - which was quite a lot of work actually. I was determined just to get through it...and then it was our 4 year anniversary. I had told him at Christmas, that I never want to celebrate our wedding ever again. As far as I am concerned, we should never have gotten married in the first place. He remembered and not a word was said and in no way was the day ackowledged. It was weird when family would remind us and say congratulations and I had to smile and say thank you. But at least thats the only pretending that had to be done.

If anything, I have realised that I am not ready to hear my husband say he loves me. I am not ready for him to re-propose or whatever the heck else he wants to do to show his committment. With thought of divorce constantly surfacing, I am a married woman not ready to commit.

Today, I asked him to take another lie detector test. The last time I did this, he started challenging why I wanted one done, only to then find out the rest of his sordid history. I wonder what will come out now? Has he managed to stay faithful for the last year? Did he continue relationships, that he said he had broken off. Will it confirm his committment to being sober and being faithful? If the test has a good result, I may be able to at least consider staying longer with him - but if its not. I actually don't know what I will do. Do I look the other way, for the sake of my son and just believe that whatever mistakes he had made, its all over now. Do I leave the man I love?

It will be interesting to see his response over the next couple of days - will he challenge me again? Will he be honest and tell me that he had continued being unfaithful even post discovery? Will it affirm his love? I don't know, but one thing is for sure. This year my life will change and it will change for the better.

#4 things I can't say out loud

I keep waiting to not be sad anymore, but little things remind me of his unfaithfulness and inside I die again. I try to hold back the tears, until they prick with pain. Sometimes the warmth of the trail they leave is the only clue left behind that I have been crying.

How is it that sadness has filled me to the brim and now carelessly spills onto my cheeks? I was happy once. Really, truely, genuinely happy. And now, I AM SAD. I am done.

Et tu Brute

One in a million

Apprehensive at the thought about our first post discovery valentines day, I caught myself thinking about our very first valentines day.

His family had gone out of the city to visit family and he told me that wouldn't be here, but he loved me. I was little sad, but looking forward to the phonecall...those phonecalls was the axis that my world turned around...anyways, he calls and tells me that he loves and suddenly the door bell rang and there he was - a shoprite teddy bear, fake rose and mug in hand. One those cheap gift sets that sold for more than it was worth and I loved it. There was no valentines day in the recent years - I remember the last one, when I scattered little heart notes all around the flat, each with a reason on why I loved him. He barely looked at them. And then we just didn't celebrate it anymore.

He swore he loved me...cried heartbreakingly when I asked him to leave. Where was this love, when he kissed another woman...when he carressed someone else. I asked him never to tell me that he loved me again - will he try on valentines day? I will try not to think about the fact that last year valentines day, he spent the day on dating websites while I planted all over facebook that I loved him. I will try not to remember how hard it was for him to plan something for me, when he barely spared a thought at putting in leave to be his girlfriend...I will try to remember the time he sang a "One in a Million" for me...how we sat outside fancy restaurants eating schwarma on a bench, because neither of knew what that booking was important back then. We didn't care though, because we were just excited to be next to each. I will try to remember, the first time he told me loved me and the softness in eyes when he said it. I will try....

#3 things I can't say out loud

I binge eat. I binge eat all the time. I weigh myself continously and freak out if my weight gain is even a fraction. I can't tell him, because he would start comparing me to his thinner ex's I am sure. Why can't I just stick to what I need to eat?? Nothing tastes as good as being skinny!

Am I whore enough for you now?

I am seething with doubt. I look at my husband and all I want to do is divorce him and maybe go back to dating him. I know its weird, that I would date but not marry - but thats how I feel. I feel like I want the chance to choose.HE chose to marry me under false pretenses. HE lied to me about his faithfulness and committment. HE chose that while I work my ass off for our family, HE would try and sleep with anyone that would have him. HE chose this life...I didn't.

I was taken in by false advertising. I bought the product, but the gaurentee of a lifetime faded before I ever got it out of the box and I would like to return to sender. I feel disempowered and victimized - I placed my hopes and dreams in someone who didn't deserve it and now...now I am meant to forgive and move on. If it wasn't for my son, I would. Having him here complicates my decisions - I would walk away in a heart beat, but what about my sons heart?

So I have decided not to breathe a word about whether hubby is being faithful. Its hard, and surprisingly my focus has shifted to food and a part of me hopes to be anorexic so that he could suffer more guilt. I fantisise about yelling at him " Isn't this what you wanted? For me to look like one of your whores?" I want him to pay for breaking my heart. I want to wound him. Even if its an inch of how I feel, it would be enough pain to last a lifetime. I want him to doubt himself. To turn away from the mirror whenever he catches his reflection. I want him to feel like I do - disgusted with himself, ashamed of how he looks and heartbroken at the thought that maybe his not good enough.

His emails are littered with "honeys" and "mwahs". The closer we get to the picture of how it was before, the more uncomfortable I get. I have seen this scene and it decieved me...fool me once....

I long to put out the light and then put out the light...

My son is my only happiness

Why me?

Weight at start: 110.6kgs
Current weight: 105.9
Lost: 4.7 kgs