Man divorcing wife for being 'too old,' comes crawling back after losing his job. Her response schooled him

A man who wanted a divorce took a step back almost immediately after losing his job. However, his wife (u/upset-quit6038), who no longer wanted to keep up with his narcissistic behavior, decided to call it quits and not trust her husband with another chance. Her post, shared in August 2025, has 13K upvotes on the platform, with netizens supporting the woman for standing her ground. 

They had been together for almost a decade, but the underlying red flag was the way he treated his wife, especially after her last pregnancy. "I just had our son 1 year ago. When I was 10 months postpartum, he was telling me I am fat and lazy, and all I do is take care of the baby and work," she wrote. The woman who still hadn't lost her pregnancy weight was struggling with childcare duties for their newborn and 4 other kids while working 40 hours a week, all alone. In fact, on her birthday, her husband threatened her not to leave the house, or else he would divorce her. And when the woman stepped out for her daughter's dentist appointment, he not only started ignoring her but also moved into a separate room. The man told almost everyone that he was considering divorce and even spoke to an attorney about the same. "He said he's the prize, he's in his prime and makes good money, and any woman would love to be in my shoes and take care of his kids. He even went as far as inviting his baby mother into the house to visit while I was out," she recalled. 

However, his behavior changed when he lost his job. The man insisted they wait before filing for divorce, but his wife told him she wanted to move out and go ahead with the separation. "Now he's going around saying I am a gold digger and will leave as soon as he loses his job. He's saying he wanted to try to make it work, but I am the one choosing to leave all his family and friends," she wrote. 

As layoffs continue to ripple through the job market, apparently, couples are forced to stay in unhappy marriages, fearing financial crisis. While the common notion says money drives people to split, a LendingTree survey found that 23% of Americans in relationships confessed to being with their current partner because they're financially dependent on them." This, in fact, proves why the man wanted to delay his divorce when he unexpectedly lost his job. But that reason, as most would agree, was surely not fair, and his wife was absolutely right to want to walk away from him. Meanwhile, reacting to the Reddit story, u/admirexagency said, "NTA. He wanted to leave you until life hit him with unemployment. That’s not love; that’s convenience. You are not an a**hole for wanting to follow through. You are protecting yourself. If he is only around because he needs stability, then he’s already shown you where you stand in his priorities."

u/anxious-routine-5526 suggested, "NTA. You're smart enough to understand that his new attitude is nothing more than a smokescreen. As soon as he's stable with a new job, he'll be right back to treating you like crap. The mere fact that he's still trashing you to anyone who will listen says all you need to know. Get separated and follow through with filing. There's no benefit for you to remain in this relationship." 

More on Scoop Upworthy

Entitled man divorces wife to make her appreciate him more but ends up regretting it

Wife fed up with husband's persistent 'weaponized incompetence' rethinks her marriage

Wife reveals the brutal reason behind her decision to divorce her husband and the internet agrees