Pregnancy brings a lot of physical and emotional changes to a person’s life, but it can also turn their easy-going relationships upside down. That’s why many couples struggle to connect with each other before and during the postpartum period, as it can be tough to deal with.
This is what one 7.5-month-pregnant woman realized after her husband got annoyed with her on their daily walk just because she wasn’t able to move fast enough for him. This left her worried, as he had treated her similarly after she had their first kid.
More info: Reddit
Pregnant folks need to be given extra care and attention during this time, rather than having to face any distress due to their loved ones
The poster explained that she couldn’t keep up with her husband’s walking pace during her pregnancy, and that he often kept moving fast and going ahead without her
When the woman confronted her husband about his impatient behavior, he acted like she was very slow, and he left to finish the walk alone while she went home
The woman explained that even when she was postpartum after their first kid, her husband was emotionally distant and acted like her struggles were inconveniencing him
The poster pleaded with her husband to show more compassion to her during this pregnancy, but he refused and said that he had a threshold for how much he could accept her
Since the man was so unemotional seeing his wife’s distress, she decided to pack up and take her son to her parents just to get some space from him
Image credits: Brave_Pea6275
The poster explained that her husband was a good man, and that she had initially believed his behavior during her first pregnancy was a form of male postpartum depression
The woman explained that she was 7.5 months pregnant and that she had begun noticing in the last few months that she wasn’t physically able to keep up with her husband’s walking speed. That’s why she sometimes told him to slow down when they were on their evening walks, but he just kept moving on ahead and ignoring her pleas.
According to relationship experts, when your loved one is emotionally distant or dismissive like this, it can lead to feelings of distress and helplessness. Folks might also not know how to open up to their partner about the lack of support they are experiencing, which can cause the behavior to repeat.
That’s why the woman eventually told her husband that she wanted him to slow down for her, but instead of listening, he just left her alone on the walk. That’s when the poster revealed that the man had done this before and been exasperated with her again and again while she was freshly postpartum.
This kind of emotional withdrawal and change in spouses before and after pregnancy can be jarring for their partners to deal with. Counselors explain that it could happen this way because men process major life changes differently and may deal with their anxiety and stress by going silent or distant.
When the woman tried to share her feelings with her husband about how alone and vulnerable she had felt after her first delivery, he just shrugged off the conversation. He also told her that he had a threshold for how much of her behavior he could deal with, which made her feel like his compassion was very limited.
When the woman realized this, she decided to pack up her things and move into her parents' place with her son, so that she could get some space from her husband. She also tried to justify his behavior to netizens by saying that he was otherwise a good guy, and that he only lacked the ability to emotionally support her.
It can be hard for folks to recognize the red flags in their spouse, which is why professionals explain that if a loved one always dismisses you or ignores your problems, that’s a sign of trouble in the relationship. Folks should also not just accept this kind of behavior, as they might grow to resent their partner, which can lead to a loveless marriage.
This is why the woman decided to take some space from her husband, but she still worried whether she was overreacting to his behavior. She also tried to defend herself from the outcry of netizens by saying that she felt her spouse had been affected by male postpartum depression, which could explain his rudeness.
What are your thoughts on the man’s emotionally distant behavior, and do you think the woman was justified for leaving him for a few days? We’d love to hear your thoughts on this matter, and how you would have handled such a situation.
Most people felt that the woman wasn’t overreacting to her husband’s behavior, and others felt that she should just try to explain to him how she wanted him to support her
