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Hi all,
I started writing my book about being the st8 spouse. It's a challenging subject to write on for the simple reason that I'm not writing it from the perspective of what happened to ME so much as what I think the majority of straight spouses need to know (based on all our experiences). And that's about the deceit, the lies, the manipulation and the gas lighting that the straight spouse are usually unknowingly a victim of. It seems that many of us feel that our situation is a highly unique situation. That means that when we find out that maybe it's not just US with this f'd up situation, we feel both better and worse. Better because we're not alone and there are others out there who have experience in this area. Worse because I think often it conveys to them that they're on a path that doesn't end well. I cannot and will not try to blow sunshine up the reader's ass and tell them how to fix the situation. There really is no "fixing" the fact that your spouse has same sex attraction, and that their desires demanding to be satisfied. Even if all of us could get our spouses to be honest and not cheat, the root of the problem is still there. That means that my advice is mostly about how to move on. And that means that I could be a voice that helps the reader to end their marriage. That's a pretty heavy weight to be responsible for.
The other challenge is about not wanting to be a book about statistics and professional opinions. Those books are already out there. I don't want to talk about how and why same sex attraction happens, and whether or not it could potentially "fixed". There are voices on both sides of that argument, and I feel it can often confuse the st8 spouse when they hear that maybe it's fixable. It spins them into years of therapy and confusion and false hope. I want to be more of a voice about disicphering what's happening to you, untangling it, weighing your options, figuring out what you want, and moving forward.
I want to hear from you guys. What do you find yourself most wanting to hear a strong voice on? I'll throw some stuff at you that I intend to cover. You guys fill me in on things I may have left out. These are in no particular order:
1. Signs (vague things, like them not wanting sex, or perfunctory sex), Evidence (finding stuff like porn, emails, etc.) and common excuses used to justify these behaviors.
2. Confronting (or deciding not to confront) your spouse
3. Untangling the mess to get to the truth (seeing through the excuses to reasons for the behavior)
4. Understanding what love is, and what it isn't
5. Why? (It's not your fault, and you can't fix them)
6. Your physical and emotional needs (STD testing, counseling, anti-depressants)
7. Deciding who to tell
8. Information gathering (collecting financial information, consulting a lawyer)
9. Deciding what you want / being your own advocate
10. Moving forward with purpose and intention
11. Dealing with grief, anger, sadness
12. The kids
13. The benefits of going no contact
14. Establishing boundaries and establishing them
15. Rebuilding your life
16. Looking toward the future
What am I missing, guys?
Kel
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Missing from your draft table of contents (but maybe covered in 10, 11, 13,14 and definitely 8 with lawyers)
should be how to do deal with raging narcissistic behavior that will come your way when the gay spouse
decides you're worthless and they want out of the marriage.
That is; once I got my head around the lies, cheating, gayness, and even divorce I was unprepared for the abusive narcissistic rage ..the pure evil.. A gay narcissist not getting what the want is a very dangerous person.
Otherwise looks good.
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Great topics! In chapter 2, definitely be sure to include a section (I'm sure you've already thought of this) on reasons to go covert or to not go covert, i.e. deciding how much is "enough" evidence for you and to not reveal your cards until you're damn good and ready. And to make sure to make copies of your evidence because not only will your GID person twist it but your OWN mind will twist it until you start to question whether or not you read it correctly or saw what you saw or heard what you heard.
There is a book I read at the very beginning of this journey through hell called something like: The straight up truth about the down low. It was mostly a collection of people's stories and I remember identifying with some of them and it helped me a bit. I wonder if outlining some people's stories here would be a good chapter? As in look, does your story match anything like this? I mean, almost all of us have heard the same lines from black and white vs. gray, to bi-curious, to idk, all the dumb phrases they use that I can't think of right now.
I love chapter 4. So many people need to be told that. Sooo many.
And chapter 5. How long did I ask that question. Too many years.
Great chapters. Wonderful.
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Excellent list of topics. It is probably included under "Who to Tell" but just wanted to emphasize that a discussion about whether it is okay for you to "out" someone or not and under what circumstances would be useful. The importance of controlling the narrative of your divorce and the years you spent with this person. Protecting their privacy means keeping your own truth locked in their closet ... something I am very much against. I fully support LGBTs right to choose when or if to come out, but once someone has crossed over to deceiving a straight spouse/partner, I believe they lose that right to our consideration.
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OH! and an address to this site!! Maybe list that in the very beginning.
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I second Rob's gay narcissist suggestion. So many of us here are really dealing with being married to narcissists who happened to be gay or something or N's with no boundaries.
We often talk about amassing documents for the Divorce Attorney. A checklist of documents commonly needed for a divorce would be great.
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There is definitely going to be an entire section on behaviors that are typical for different phases of finding out. For instance, when you first find something (or ask questions before you even find something concrete because you know something is wrong), there are typical reactions, excuses and behaviors associated with that. The narcissist will be in each section. I think there will likely be an entire section on narcissists. But of course then that means I need to learn more about narcissism, and I'm not a doctor! (I just play one on TV).
K
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I think for me , when I first found gay porn over 20 years ago now, the first word I think of is shame, horrible shame. So because of that, I told no one, not a soul, and I let him convince me it was nothing, blah, blah. And because he was seemingly a good father and husband, I believed him. My hope is that no man or woman ever needs to feel shame again when they find themselves in this situation, they can talk about it and get themselves out of it. No more shame.
I think that an important message is owning your own sexuality. Some of us came from families that for religious or cultural reasons conveyed the message that sex is something that should occur only in marriage and it is something that men want and women have because that's part of the deal. Sex education was more like a diagram for a DYI project with arousal and desire never mentioned.
Thanks to the gay rights movement girls today can't help knowing that there are men who want sex with men and women who want sex with women but within their social circles they may not know anyone who is openly gay.A same-sex friend who is more valued than a fiance/fiancee is a flashing red light with sirens wailing and marriage preparation classes could include discussions - but that would mean the leaders must acknowledge that same-sex attractions are an impediment to a straight marriage instead of a straight marriage being a solution.
What is so difficult about being married to a closeted spouse is being in the church environment. It's common to act like homosexuality or being gay is something "out there" beyond the congregation. It's never acknowledged that single or married people (people married to the opposite sex) in the congregation could experience homosexual feelings let alone act on them. Being involved in gay porn is acting on those feelings and goes beyond the sanitized term of "same sex attraction" that very traditional churches are starting to embrace and acknowledge within a congregation. If the person acts on their same sex feelings it still is not termed gay behavior. The deceit that often goes hand in hand, especially with married spouses, who have "same sex attraction" or gay feelings is never mentioned. When someone talks about his/her "same sex attraction", usually after being caught, they are also deemed honest and given the benefit of the doubt even if they've been deceptive for years. Yes, we should love and accept people, but people should be honest and not deceive their spouses and families or act as if they'd never act on those feelings when that's exactly what they do. Many religious people hide behind a spouse to look straight. Many religious people immerse themselves in gay culture and then demand forgiveness from the spouse who they intentionally duped. Sadly, male religious leaders in particular support this forgiveness idea when the spouse knows there still is great emotional danger in trusting a deceptive spouse. The straight spouse (often a woman) is labeled unforgiving and even shunned by a congregation for standing up to an unfaithful spouse or for "gossiping" as to why her marriage fell apart. The straight spouse becomes twice victimized, by the spouse and by the church for not just overlooking the deep pain and broken trust that is experienced. The popular church motto is to reach out with love toward the person with "same sex attraction" who married an innocent person, a person who thought he/she was entering a heterosexual marriage. Instead the straight spouse was pulled into a mixed-orientation marriage unawares. Surprise! Then the "forgive and forget" advice is administered on the straight spouse and, of course, the expectation to silence the devastating experience and to only say positive things about how the church leaders handled the matter. Ouch! Many church leaders don't want this talked about beyond their method of handling the situation. It is a complex situation, but it would be great to reach out in love to the straight spouse too and not just lovingly embrace the person with same sex attraction. Again, it would be wise for all counselors to grasp the fact that deceit often continues and doesn't just go away in these marital situations. I guess church leaders can be indirectly or even directly part of the gaslighting process too.