Reply to Did your parents cheat? How did you feel about it?

Forum Index » Relationship Discussion (non-explicit)

Reply to "Did your parents cheat? How did you feel about it?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous]And if you are a cheater, how do you think your kids feel about it?

My father is a jovial, well respected academic who makes great money, has lots of friends (many of whom overlook his vile womanizing), and checks off many of the boxes that people think makes a man wonderful.  He was a serial cheater (probably still is, but that's the second wife's problem now).  It was so bad that, even as a kid, I could actually rattle off the names of at least 5 of his mistresses.  He didn't know that I knew so much, but my mother did not shield the children from it.  In particular, I was her confidant/captive audience, so she would tell me all about the rage she felt.  Truth be told, however, even if she hadn't told me, I would have known because some of the mistresses were obvious.  Sometimes, I knew before my mother did, because I was a very perceptive child.

One thing I have noticed is that cheaters never seem to think of is how their children perceive them for their infidelity.  There is a huge rift in my relationship with my father and he thinks that it is because my mother poisoned me against him.  In reality, I don't have a high opinion of my mother either for staying with such an awful husband for so long, so my disdain of my father really is not out of protectiveness towards her.  My anger towards him started long before they divorced.  As a child, I felt personally betrayed every time another mistress came to light because it was as if he was cheating on our family, trashing the trust we should have been able to have in him.  I couldn't show my true feelings because I would be punished for being disrespectful and I also did not have the words as a young child.  But I remember just thinking he was a nasty low life.

Was I just a judgmental child or can other posters with unfaithful parents relate?  For those who are cheating, how do you think your children feel or will feel if they find out?[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics