Woman refuses to put up with her husband when he shows insensitivity towards her emotions

Relationships require a lot of compromises, but there are just certain things that people refuse to follow in order to make a relationship work. There are assumptions by partners that as time goes by, the rules can be changed for the sake of the relationship. But it doesn't always end up in the favor of both parties. u/Alternative_Gene4352 faced a similar conjecture in her life recently over a nickname. Even though a nickname might not sound like a matter to have an issue with, it had a deeper meaning for Lucy as it was associated with her deceased mother.

Lucy's issue is that her partner refuses to respect the emotions attached to that particular nickname and uses it callously. She also has doubts about whether taking a strong stand about it is too much. Therefore, she made a post about it on Reddit to ask people what approach should be taken. In the beginning of the post, Lucy gave a context regarding the whole situation, by stating that her husband has always called her by nicknames. She has never been bothered about them as they have been food or animal related. They do tend to be around for a while until her husband gets bored by it.

Her husband's family also has a pattern of calling her by the same nickname. For years, Lucy has found the whole thing endearing until they all landed on 'Lulu'. She explained, "I was called Lulu growing up exclusively by my mother, and she passed away not long before I met my husband. I took her loss pretty hard. I told him that it has a lot of emotional significance for me and that it doesn’t feel right to hear anyone else say it." Ever since she has been together with her husband, this fact was respected and adhered to by him, until recently.

Her husband, to her surprise, began calling her by this nickname despite being aware of the discomfort it causes her. This all started, as per her knowledge, when his sister began calling her 'Lulu.' Slowly, her husband picked up on it and began doing the same. He was aware that the whole thing is still a sensitive issue but continued to call Lucy by that nickname. Perturbed, she calmly asked him several times to not do it anymore. The whole thing reached a breaking point when he asked her to "be over it" as it has been a few years since her mother's demise. This prompted Lucy to pack her bags and leave the house. She is currently living with her sister.

Later on, the husband and his family texted Lucy that she is "doing a lot over a nickname." Considering that she has a healthy relationship with her husband otherwise, she is beginning to question if she is overreacting. u/dunemi supported Lucy and wrote, "If nicknames aren't a big deal, then why can't he let this nickname drop? Why do he and his family have to keep the ONE nickname that causes you pain?" u/south3y found the whole thing disrespectful, "It's not the nickname; it's the disrespect. NTA. Calling it an overreaction is exactly the same as the 'Can't you take a joke?' defense, which is always lame."