“I Thought I Was The Only Man In The World Whose Wife Beat Him Up Regularly”

Dear Ann: Recently you said in your column, “Somewhere in this world, at this very moment, several wives are beating up their husbands.” I cannot tell you what those words meant to me. You see, I thought I was the only man in the world whose wife beat him up regularly.

The first time my wife knocked me around I couldn’t believe it. When we were going together she never showed this side of herself. I felt so humiliated I couldn’t discuss it with anyone. I made three appointments with a marriage counselor and broke them all. I lied to my parents when they asked about the bruises on my lip and the black eye. You may wonder why I took such abuse. Well, I tried to fight back but my wife is bigger and stronger than I am.

Finally, on the fourth try, I did keep an appointment with a counselor. He was very understanding — didn’t laugh or make any unkind remarks. He asked me to bring my wife in so the three of us could discuss the problem. She agreed. We get along so much better now. My wife still has a temper, but she doesn’t hit me anymore. Thank you, Ann, for changing my life. I owe you a lot. — A New Man.

Dear Man: Glad I was able to help. And now — all you readers who accuse me of copping out when I say, “Get counseling” — aren’t you ashamed?

[Ann Landers, “Counseling stops wife from beating husband,” syndicated, Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wi.), Mar. 7, 1977, Sec. 2, p. 4]

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For more cases see: Domestic Violence: Non-Lethal Female on Male

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[478-4/12/21]

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