I typically don’t care about things like hairstyle, makeup or clothes. But my wife has started giving herself a buzz cut and I simply hate it. I told her and she grew it out for a while, but she said longer hair was making her depressed and it needed to be a buzz cut. She said it just looks like her when she sees it. Part of me thinks that’s gender euphoria and she’s just around the corner from realising that she’s trans. I would not be comfortable continuing the relationship in that case. (She has said she feels a-gender but not male).

I’ve tried to tolerate it, but I dislike looking at her now and it’s contributing to me being depressed now. I don’t want these feelings every time I look at my wife.

We’ve generally had a good relationship over about one and a half decades, with two young children. We’re also codependent and own a house together.

It would make things difficult if we separate. I really don’t want to separate just because of a haircut, but I’ve definitely been thinking about it. I just don’t know what to do.

  • makingStuffForFun@lemmy.ml
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    8 months ago

    When I was depressed in my former relationship, I would shave my head. Look it up. It’s a normal thing to do, when wanting a fresh start. I wish you both the best.

    • ImpromptuIdentity@lemmy.worldOP
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      8 months ago

      That is interesting. I will look it up.

      Having young children has definitely been stressful for both of us and it was probably the roughest patch when she first wanted to shave it. But, I thought things had been getting better, except for my current struggle with not wanting to look at her which has been slowly building over time.

      • PlasticExistence@lemmy.world
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        8 months ago

        It’s time for therapy because I would bet money you’ve got other issues that you need to dig into for the sake of your kids. The haircut is just the visible manifestation of some other problems you have with her, namely that you’ve already stated that you would end the marriage if she were to simply admit she’s trans.

        I’m not judging you at all. Relationships are complicated and constantly evolving. It’s possible you’ve both grown in different directions that are incompatible. It’s also possible you just need to talk some things out.

        I wish you the best either way.

    • AA5B@lemmy.world
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      8 months ago

      Upvote, to hope this is it: it can be a pretty serious issue, but it would be a huge step forward to identify what’s going on and to find steps to take. Good luck, OP