Originally Posted by
LoveMyAHusband 
Intellectually I know I wasn’t truly helping anything, but I can’t even imagine the pain one would feel when having your life partner bow out on you. Does that eventually get better? When?
You actually
CAN imagine the pain of having a life partner bow out on you…..right? ‘Cause that’s what he did. What he’s doing.
You are just responding as healthfully as possible to the emotional abandonment that is addiction.
It hurts terribly, but it gets better. I think it took me about a year to feel ready to date, and I married my current (wonderful) husband about 3 and 1/2 years after I left my ex.
If my ex had thrown himself into recovery and desired to attempt reconciliation after a year or more of sobriety, I might have considered it - I never stopped loving him. But I also never stopped believing that active addiction and true partnership were incompatible.
You know this, too. In a year you’ll be able to see how much your life has improved and changed. You’ll also be able to see what he has done with his “freedom.”
For now, focus on kids and friendships and diving! Enjoy and build your beautiful life!