Stonewalling, feeling lost.
My husband has been stonewalling me since yesterday. We were having a good day, and we were hanging out at a brewery. He asked me what has been up during the week, and I said I was exhausted because of my period. Mine tend to wipe me out for a couple days and I tend to zone out. He said that's part of it, and I said what do you mean. He thought something else was going on that made me shut down. I said no; however, I did have financial concerns but I wasn't going to address it until our bills hit and I could have a better picture of our finances, which would probably be Monday or Tuesday. He said I've been on my phone a lot and mimed aggressive texting, which is how he mocks me. I said well if you weren't angling your phone away from me (which he knows triggers my anxiety), he said "okay, you win." and shut down. I said I'm not trying to win, I felt hurt by you mocking me. He kept up with "yup, you're right, I'm wrong."
We came home and I went and took some time to myself to calm down. Eventually I came back downstairs and tried to talk to him, but he gave me short responses and pretended to be asleep. So that was the evening - him ignoring me, leaving a giant gap between us in bed that night, and ignoring me this morning. I was taking out the trash when he came down, and I had pre-race coverage for the F1 race on. He turned off the TV and sat silently with his eyes closed. I sat by him and held him and got nothing. So I went about the day - fed the cats, got laundry started, did chores. Eventually he came upstairs to cut a check for our bills. He said I could transfer our mortgage to his name if it was stressing me out. I said it was our home equity loan, he said transfer it to him. I said I could take on a different bill, he said no. I tried to insist, he said "NO!" and left the room. When I went down to flip the laundry he was getting ready to go out for the day. I gave him a hug and said I love you - no response at all, he just kept looking straight ahead. I told him to have a good day.
So he's been gone for about an hour now and I've been crying, texting friends. I'm not crying anymore, I feel lost and I'm not really sure what to do next. I'm writing out a letter to him, don't know if he'll read it. But yeah. Thanks for reading.
@blueGrapefruit289 I can feel how heavy this is for you, and I’m so sorry you’re sitting in this kind of silence from someone you love so deeply. The way you kept reaching out — holding him, saying “I love you,” trying to talk — that shows how much heart you have, even when it hurts. It makes sense that you feel lost right now, because stonewalling can feel like being shut out of your own home. Just know you’re not alone in this, and your feelings are valid. You deserve to be heard, cared for, and met with the same tenderness you give so freely. 💙
I’m really sorry you’re going through this. I can relate heavily it’s not easy when my husband’s first response is to shut me out especially at times when communication is all it takes. In times like these I’d just give him space and let time heal this. I’m here for you