My Husband Wants a Divorce Because of My Menopause, So I Planned a Revenge

Battling menopause is not easy, even if the family supports you, but it can be so tough if you have to deal with it alone. Although it’s a normal part of life and has been talked about more openly in recent years, it looks like not everyone understands what it means for a woman. Just as it happened with one of our readers, whose husband couldn’t tolerate the changes she was going through.

Being hit by menopause

Dear Bright Side,

I’d like to share my story as it might give inspiration to other women who find themselves in a similar situation. So here it is:

For most of my life, I thought I had a good handle on who I was. I had a career, a marriage, and a child. I was confident. But then menopause hit me like a freight train.

Suddenly, I didn’t recognize the woman in the mirror. My skin broke out like I was a teenager again. The weight crept on, and no matter what I did, it wouldn’t budge. My clothes didn’t fit anymore. My energy was gone. I felt invisible, not just to the world, but to myself.

I tried to laugh it off. I called the hot flashes “internal summer.” I joked about my mood swings. But deep down, I felt like I was losing everything: my energy, my confidence, my body, and slowly, my marriage.

My husband asked for divorce

One night, during an argument over something as silly as the thermostat, my husband looked at me with the coldest expression I’ve ever seen and said:

“I don’t think I can do this anymore. I’m not attracted to you. I want a divorce.”

It wasn’t just the words; it was how casually he said them, like I was some used appliance he was ready to toss out.

I didn’t cry. I didn’t scream. I simply smiled and said,
“Okay.”

That night, while he snored beside me, I quietly woke our teenage son and whispered,
“Pack a bag. Just the essentials.”

We drove to my sister’s house. I needed a few days away and space to think. But I wasn’t wallowing. I was plotting.

Getting fit again

I thought over how to change my life, and made a plan.

The first step was that I joined a gym. Not to win my husband back, but to feel my strength again. The regular exercise helped me to get back my energy, lose my excess weight, and made me more relaxed.

I hired a hormone specialist and had a more balanced diet with lots of vegetables, whole wheat bread, and lean protein.

I also found a therapist who helped me battle my mood swings and process all the changes I experienced in my body and soul to get ready to face the divorce.

Then I got a lawyer. A good one.

My revenge

It turned out, while my husband was losing interest in me, he’d also been “finding it” with a woman from his office. I found the texts, so it wasn’t hard to prove it. I arrived confident in the divorce proceeding, and won more than I could imagine. I got the house, the car, a chunk of his retirement, and full custody of our son.

He didn’t expect me to fight back. He thought I’d beg. So that was my biggest revenge. Watching him realize that the woman he threw away wasn’t gone, she just transformed into someone far stronger than he ever deserved.

So yes, menopause changed me. But not into someone weaker. To someone who is more confident and knows what she wants in life, and won’t let others take control over it.

Wow, that’s a really powerful story about fighting back and taking back control. You can read a similar, inspiring story about a woman who taught a lesson to her mother-in-law in our My MIL Belittled Me for Years—I Finally Got Revenge Without Saying a Word article.