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Fully Exhausted My Romantic Partner

WRM

New Member
Fully Exhausting My Partner

As a contextual foundation, I uprooted my entire life to move to a different country and things have not worked out well especially after moving from 6+ years of long distance into living in the same home together.

My immigration status is quite muddy and things are financially downwards. I have been placed in charge of household chores which I fulfill on the daily basis but I sometimes make mistakes like leaving a door unlocked or forgetting to wash the towels. The issue is that everytime I make a mistake, my partner would reinforce that their resentment for me is increasing as a result of our relationship situation being affected by things beyond our control. I live in a constant state of worry as my partner's mood can change depending on how well I have conducted myself on the basis of utility.

An example would be, them complaining about having to tell me what needs to be done and their frustrations with my lack of sense and intuition. I will be get called things like useless, parasitic, brain dead and the other slurs that define someone who is disabled. In public, I would get put down in front of friends or get snapped at for standing in their way in a narrow store or not staying still so they can store things in my backpack. Their friends have observed these behaviors and detected there is something wrong, one of them even confronted them about it. Visitors that enter the home will sense something is off and would crack jokes about them abusing me (I am uncertain if this is abuse or simply frustration).

I have brought up my concerns and depression as a result of being put down so much but their response is that they are only this way because I have been an irresponsible person, or someone who has been romantically terrible. I do not know the ins and outs of romanticism or how to date properly and I am inept at emotional support. However, I cannot help but feel as if their treatment towards me is incredibly unfair especially if they have begun showing resentment towards autism or would make off-puting remarks about my condition.

In terms of other situations like hobbies, romance and intimacy, I feel as if I would be consistently tested for my level of enthusiasm, my "performance" and my conduct in common shared interests like TTRPGs. I will get made to make choices in which there is a right or a wrong answer even though they display such choices as equal in measure. There are times where I have picked the wrong choice and it gets tallied and brought up in arguments against me. Upon researching the subject matter, one could describe these tests as Kafka-esque in nature.

In aspects of interest, if I show too much excitement or interests for something or ask for something, they spitefully refuse to acknowledge it in meaningful ways. The more I ask or talk about my interests, the more they disengage or seeminly lose tolerance towards. As a result, I have learnt to essentially keep my interests and obsessions to myself but found peace in sharing them with their friends instead.

It is also contextually important that I am a transitioning MtF individual while my partner is "non-binary." I use to force myself to take on more masculine roles in aspects of our life to fulfill their intimate needs but despite the discomfort I put myself through and still would willingly do so to give them what they desire, it always falls short or lacking. As a result, our sex life has also diminished to a state of near zero.

I am unsure how to move on from this as I am stuck in another country and they are financially supporting me despite the way I am being treated. I have come to this forum because they tend to read all my social media messages and if I try to talk to their friends about them, they would intervene with the need to share their side or the story to explain why they have treated me like this as if theyre doing damage control and it hurts to know I would put their friends through that kind of stress and confrontation.
 
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I am unsure how to move on from this as I am stuck in another country and they are financially supporting me despite the way I am being treated.
That sentence holds the answers you need.

You need to be able to move on and find people that you fit in better with, but far more importantly than that you need to learn how to be independent and self supporting. Get a job, earn money, rent your own place to live in. This is incredibly important not just for how other people perceive you but also for how you perceive yourself.
 
I felt trapped in a situation once where I felt powerless. I phoned help-lines. In the U.K. there are organisations such as The Samaritans, who are not just there for life or death critical emergencies but can also give people advice who feel trapped or powerless. In my area (and possibly there are equivalents in other parts of the world) there is a mental health emergency line. I phoned these because I felt trapped and the situation was making me quite paranoid. These help-lines directed me to help and advice and to people who could help me plan a way out of the disturbing situation.

One thing to say is that paranoia, which is what I had during that period, is unusual because it was causing others to change how they behaved towards me. People lost patience with my paranoia. To give some background, in my case I moved into a quiet leafy area where there had never been any autistic people and there was very little understanding of what autism was. A kind of Hitchcock suspicion arose amongst the neighbours, who would run inside when I passed by. No matter how I tried to appear casual and pleasant their suspicions grew. I of course added to the difficulty by becoming paranoid, which created more suspicion. I survived that house and that neighbourhood by turning my lounge into an art gallery and invited drawing groups to set up easels and meet once a month (I provided free tea and coffee. ) Art in that narrow suspicious neighbourhood helped to change the narrative: "He has not come here to murder us in our beds, he is just an artist.' I stayed there quite a long time in the end because new people moved in who understood that people don't have to be socially identical.

In your situation I would say you should get as many free phone advisors and face-to-face advisors as you can. In fact aim to break the national record. You should also find ways to switch off from those around you by buying newspapers. A newspaper, helped me because a newspaper is a symbol of ordinary life and day-to-day routine. Even carrying a newspaper seemed to make me less visible, less targeted, more a part of a normal day.

'Outdated' is right when he says you can improve your prospects by finding a job or else finding voluntary roles in the community. That will definitely help you. In the short term the phone help-lines might help you as they helped me. The phone advisors are people who have encountered trapped people many times before and they have proven methods of steering people towards a better all round situation.

Even though I admit that my autism fascination is photography I must explain that becoming a photographer changes how people relate to you. Once they spot a photograph you have taken that they like then their attitude changes. They suddenly see a side of you that they understand. Pinning up your photographs in your home changes that narrative as I said before. Photography is a great liberator.
 
Fully Exhausting My Partner

As a contextual foundation, I uprooted my entire life to move to a different country and things have not worked out well especially after moving from 6+ years of long distance into living in the same home together.

My immigration status is quite muddy and things are financially downwards. I have been placed in charge of household chores which I fulfill on the daily basis but I sometimes make mistakes like leaving a door unlocked or forgetting to wash the towels. The issue is that everytime I make a mistake, my partner would reinforce that their resentment for me is increasing as a result of our relationship situation being affected by things beyond our control. I live in a constant state of worry as my partner's mood can change depending on how well I have conducted myself on the basis of utility.

An example would be, them complaining about having to tell me what needs to be done and their frustrations with my lack of sense and intuition. I will be get called things like useless, parasitic, brain dead and the other slurs that define someone who is disabled. In public, I would get put down in front of friends or get snapped at for standing in their way in a narrow store or not staying still so they can store things in my backpack. Their friends have observed these behaviors and detected there is something wrong, one of them even confronted them about it. Visitors that enter the home will sense something is off and would crack jokes about them abusing me (I am uncertain if this is abuse or simply frustration).

I have brought up my concerns and depression as a result of being put down so much but their response is that they are only this way because I have been an irresponsible person, or someone who has been romantically terrible. I do not know the ins and outs of romanticism or how to date properly and I am inept at emotional support. However, I cannot help but feel as if their treatment towards me is incredibly unfair especially if they have begun showing resentment towards autism or would make off-puting remarks about my condition.

In terms of other situations like hobbies, romance and intimacy, I feel as if I would be consistently tested for my level of enthusiasm, my "performance" and my conduct in common shared interests like TTRPGs. I will get made to make choices in which there is a right or a wrong answer even though they display such choices as equal in measure. There are times where I have picked the wrong choice and it gets tallied and brought up in arguments against me. Upon researching the subject matter, one could describe these tests as Kafka-esque in nature.

In aspects of interest, if I show too much excitement or interests for something or ask for something, they spitefully refuse to acknowledge it in meaningful ways. The more I ask or talk about my interests, the more they disengage or seeminly lose tolerance towards. As a result, I have learnt to essentially keep my interests and obsessions to myself but found peace in sharing them with their friends instead.

It is also contextually important that I am a transitioning MtF individual while my partner is "non-binary." I use to force myself to take on more masculine roles in aspects of our life to fulfill their intimate needs but despite the discomfort I put myself through and still would willingly do so to give them what they desire, it always falls short or lacking. As a result, our sex life has also diminished to a state of near zero.

I am unsure how to move on from this as I am stuck in another country and they are financially supporting me despite the way I am being treated. I have come to this forum because they tend to read all my social media messages and if I try to talk to their friends about them, they would intervene with the need to share their side or the story to explain why they have treated me like this as if theyre doing damage control and it hurts to know I would put their friends through that kind of stress and confrontation.
There is a saying, "You can only please some people some of the time." You're living that right now.

Some people, it seems, have almost a sensory disorder where nothing is perfect... something is always "off"... an itch they can't scratch... it can be any stupid, insignificant thing, bordering on the ridiculous... and you happen to be the outlet for this. I've been with with same woman for 40 years... and I can call her out on this sort of behavior... I try to do it with a sense of humor and love without making her feel bad... but also to let her know she isn't going to hold power over me and make me feel bad about myself. More importantly, I absolutely do not put myself in a dependent or sub position... I am the calm one... she's an "alpha"... and I am too. I just try to keep things in check, nip things in the bud, as one might say... deal with it directly when it is just a little thing... don't allow a lot of little problems grow into an unmanageable beast. Your thread title "Fully exhausting my partner"... you're putting yourself in the dependent/sub position... do not do that... your partner sees this as "weakness" and nothing good comes of this... it's always bad. Your partner needs to see you as "the rock" in their life... responsible, accountable, dependable, trustworthy... and it goes for the both of you.

Instead of conflict, we complement each other... she has a skillset, and I as well. We divide and conquer. Differences in this regard do not have to be a source of conflict.

As far as our hobbies and special interests... with few exceptions (travel)... we have our own things going on. I have no interest in hers, nor she of mine. We often separate and do our own things throughout the day.

I love my wife... and she loves me... but neither one of us are "romantic", per se. My love language is quite different than hers. My communication style is different than hers. Her political views are different than mine. Her emotional control is different than mine. But... there's a lot of hand holding, cuddling on the couch, long hugs, and several reminders of "I love you". You age, your body doesn't cooperate and perform, your beauty fades... and you see beyond the physical and begin to see more the soul.

Having said that, we never complain about each other in front of other people. That's our business... not anyone else's. The problem with discussing these relationship issues with your friends and family is that these people will always take your side and make your partner to be the villain... mainly because they only have that one perspective. They might not understand that you are the villain... or what is more common... both are at fault. They will amplify the issue and drive a destructive wedge between you two. As one might say, "It takes two to Tango." When it comes to intimacy... one person isn't bad in bed... both are... neither one of you are meeting each other's needs. One person doesn't have an argument... both are. One isn't miscommunicating... both are.

Both must take responsibility and accountability. Some people go through several failed relationships then wonder "Why can't I find a good man/woman?" They refuse to take accountability and responsibility for is the fact that they were the problem... not the long list of failed partners. Now, I am not suggesting that it is your fault or your partner's... it's rarely one-sided. That said, it may be that the relationship has suffered enough damage that the best thing one can do for one's mental health is to just go you're own ways. It's up to you two how this all plays out.
 
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There is a saying, "You can only please some people some of the time." You're living that right now.

Some people, it seems, have almost a sensory disorder where nothing is perfect... something is always "off"... an itch they can't scratch... it can be any stupid, insignificant thing, bordering on the ridiculous... and you happen to be the outlet for this. I've been with with same woman for 40 years... and I can call her out on this sort of behavior... I try to do it with a sense of humor and love without making her feel bad... but also to let her know she isn't going to hold power over me and make me feel bad about myself. More importantly, I absolutely do not put myself in a dependent or sub position... I am the calm one... she's an "alpha"... and I am too. I just try to keep things in check, nip things in the bud, as one might say... deal with it directly when it is just a little thing... don't allow a lot of little problems grow into an unmanageable beast. Your thread title "Fully exhausting my partner"... you're putting yourself in the dependent/sub position... do not do that... your partner sees this as "weakness" and nothing good comes of this... it's always bad. Your partner needs to see you as "the rock" in their life... responsible, accountable, dependable, trustworthy... and it goes for the both of you.

Instead of conflict, we complement each other... she has a skillset, and I as well. We divide and conquer. Differences in this regard do not have to be a source of conflict.

As far as our hobbies and special interests... with few exceptions (travel)... we have our own things going on. I have no interest in hers, nor she of mine. We often separate and do our own things throughout the day.

I love my wife... and she loves me... but neither one of us are "romantic", per se. My love language is quite different than hers. My communication style is different than hers. Her political views are different than mine. Her emotional control is different than mine. But... there's a lot of hand holding, cuddling on the couch, long hugs, and several reminders of "I love you". You age, your body doesn't cooperate and perform, your beauty fades... and you see beyond the physical and begin to see more the soul.

Having said that, we never complain about each other in front of other people. That's our business... not anyone else's. The problem with discussing these relationship issues with your friends and family is that these people will always take your side and make your partner to be the villain... mainly because they only have that one perspective. They might not understand that you are the villain... or what is more common... both are at fault. They will amplify the issue and drive a destructive wedge between you two. As one might say, "It takes two to Tango." When it comes to intimacy... one person isn't bad in bed... both are... neither one of you are meeting each other's needs. One person doesn't have an argument... both are. One isn't miscommunicating... both are.

Both must take responsibility and accountability. Some people go through several failed relationships then wonder "Why can't I find a good man/woman?" They refuse to take accountability and responsibility for is the fact that they were the problem... not the long list of failed partners. Now, I am not suggesting that it is your fault or your partner's... it's rarely one-sided. That said, it may be that the relationship has suffered enough damage that the best thing one can do for one's mental health is to just go you're own ways. It's up to you two how this all plays out.

I think the most important detail here is the fact that I have been too overly dependent on my partner for certain aspects of my life. Partially, it is because I have made immature decisions in life and was rather bad at adulting but despite growing up and improving, they do not trust me without "training wheels" or a lack of surveillance. I think there is something demeaning in being infantilized and everyone else in the thread has mirrored my personal thought on the manner but have offered incredible insight like introducing a neutral aspect of the self like a photograph or getting enough career credentials.

All these things seem to balance the power dynamic where currently I am being twisted into the "submissive child" in the relationship which can be violating in itself.

As for discussing things with friends, I pretty much gained most of my friendships through them and most of the time, the friends which is mainly their friends would end up painting me as a main problem (This could very well be the case, but being put down in public or being called names & slurs in private does not help one develop the strength needed to be dependable). Most of them would also excuse the abusive behaviors as a result of my negligence or inability to avoid making frustrating mistakes like being forgetful or being unable to stay in a good mood (e.g. being gloomy or grumpy ).

'Oudated' is right in that my only ticket to a happier life through returning to my home country or being more of an equal would mean career advancement or self improvement is a requirement.
 
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Fully Exhausting My Partner

As a contextual foundation, I uprooted my entire life to move to a different country and things have not worked out well especially after moving from 6+ years of long distance into living in the same home together.

My immigration status is quite muddy and things are financially downwards. I have been placed in charge of household chores which I fulfill on the daily basis but I sometimes make mistakes like leaving a door unlocked or forgetting to wash the towels. The issue is that everytime I make a mistake, my partner would reinforce that their resentment for me is increasing as a result of our relationship situation being affected by things beyond our control. I live in a constant state of worry as my partner's mood can change depending on how well I have conducted myself on the basis of utility.

An example would be, them complaining about having to tell me what needs to be done and their frustrations with my lack of sense and intuition. I will be get called things like useless, parasitic, brain dead and the other slurs that define someone who is disabled. In public, I would get put down in front of friends or get snapped at for standing in their way in a narrow store or not staying still so they can store things in my backpack. Their friends have observed these behaviors and detected there is something wrong, one of them even confronted them about it. Visitors that enter the home will sense something is off and would crack jokes about them abusing me (I am uncertain if this is abuse or simply frustration).

I have brought up my concerns and depression as a result of being put down so much but their response is that they are only this way because I have been an irresponsible person, or someone who has been romantically terrible. I do not know the ins and outs of romanticism or how to date properly and I am inept at emotional support. However, I cannot help but feel as if their treatment towards me is incredibly unfair especially if they have begun showing resentment towards autism or would make off-puting remarks about my condition.

In terms of other situations like hobbies, romance and intimacy, I feel as if I would be consistently tested for my level of enthusiasm, my "performance" and my conduct in common shared interests like TTRPGs. I will get made to make choices in which there is a right or a wrong answer even though they display such choices as equal in measure. There are times where I have picked the wrong choice and it gets tallied and brought up in arguments against me. Upon researching the subject matter, one could describe these tests as Kafka-esque in nature.

In aspects of interest, if I show too much excitement or interests for something or ask for something, they spitefully refuse to acknowledge it in meaningful ways. The more I ask or talk about my interests, the more they disengage or seeminly lose tolerance towards. As a result, I have learnt to essentially keep my interests and obsessions to myself but found peace in sharing them with their friends instead.

It is also contextually important that I am a transitioning MtF individual while my partner is "non-binary." I use to force myself to take on more masculine roles in aspects of our life to fulfill their intimate needs but despite the discomfort I put myself through and still would willingly do so to give them what they desire, it always falls short or lacking. As a result, our sex life has also diminished to a state of near zero.

I am unsure how to move on from this as I am stuck in another country and they are financially supporting me despite the way I am being treated. I have come to this forum because they tend to read all my social media messages and if I try to talk to their friends about them, they would intervene with the need to share their side or the story to explain why they have treated me like this as if theyre doing damage control and it hurts to know I would put their friends through that kind of stress and confrontation.
Sounds more like your partner is exhausting you. And doesn't appreciate it or care in the slightest.
 
I didn't read the other posts, but it sounded like you signed up for slave labor, and l am so sorry you were duped. The big question here? How can you get your life back? What ideas do you have? I only ask as a concerned person. How can you move forward from this?
 
@WRM, add this to the comments from @Outdated. “(I am uncertain if this is abuse or simply frustration).” What matters is how it is affecting you. FWIW, it sounds like abuse. What is keeping you there?
 
@Aspychata
I am lost really, I do not know how to move on from this, I have no friends in this foreign country so I have no one to talk to but people in this forum, I am also almost afraid they would come here and find out I am talking about them.

I need help quantifying if I am being exploited. They do pay most of the bills and all I have to fork out a is a fraction a month ( less than 20% ) which has been challenging as I am relying on freelance artwork. I recently launched an etsy buisiness but it has been stressful and I am unsure if it would even succeed. They do forgive late payments or waive some a month if I am particularly struggling but it sounds like they resent me being here because I wasnt what I turned out to be. I am really new to living with someone else as mentioned and I do have a daily list of chores that need to be completed. If I fall behind, I tend to get scolded, told off or get insulted which hurts my capability to work my freelance hustle and meet that monthly financial obligation...

@AuAL
Just unemployment and I do not have enough money to go back to my home country and settle into a home. I am basically homeless and my partner is threatening to disown me because of small arguments here and there. They also use being kicked out the house as a threat and mentioned that I am walking a very thin wire at the moment. I also have emotional/attitude problems so despite not swearing or using profanities, I struggle with using the correct tone or eloquent delivery on things. So sometimes I dont realize my temperament ruins the energy of the room.

I am rather afraid of sharing my feelings on any matter. Like I wanted to clarify if they meant the insult they called me today because of a small argument and they doubled down and explained why they used such an insult and added more to it. I am deeply upset and hurt but if I were to express it, I would surely be sent home without financial help.

Another thing that has paralyzed me is, I made so many creative collaborations wirh this person and weaved many stories as we played TTRPGs together. Literature, role-playing games and memories of collaborative storytelling keep me chained to this person because if I left, than everything I create or will continue to cherish will feel so painful and empty.

Today, I have been told I should have a return plan ready if I do not become more emotionally valuable and if I do not control my autistic outbursts as it has happened twice this week already. I am really trying my hardest to control myself and it has been difficult, it use to happen far more often but, I have resorted to being silent and not speaking much because I am afraid I will say something and my tone would anger them.
 
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