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Just Said Yes April 2020

Calling off Wedding - Please help

Laura, on September 26, 2019 at 10:41 AM Posted in Etiquette and Advice 0 13

*This is a Destination Wedding, so that complicates things even more.

History.

Fiancé and I have been together two years. We've both been married before and have 3 kids between us from past our marriages. My family lives a few hours away, but we visit often and they love him, my sister's husband and my fiancé are now best friends and are closing on their new business TOMORROW, so I'll have to deal with being around him in the future. I'm not as close to his family (who lives minutes from us) as I'd like to be, but they do like me. They just feel like they don't know me very well. They're a very big family, with big personalities, and there are always 20 people around, whether its a bday party, football game, whatever.

Fiancé hates that I don't feel close to his family, but its not from lack of trying. I've never had one on one time with any of them, even his sisters, and they've never tried to get to know me, its just very surface level.

Our two daughters are very close (ages 8 & 9), and my son really looks up to him. I know they'll be heart broken, and that's the hardest part.

Problems.

He proposed in June and it has been hell ever since. We feel like we're being hit from all sides with one stressful thing after another. Planning a wedding hasn't been fun, we're not excited, we stay stressed and it causes us to lash out at each other. I think we've fought more in the past 3 1/2 months than the whole 2 years combined. Started out just a few weeks after, a guy messaged me on FB saying he needed to talk to me about his wife and my fiancé, that they had been talking and blah blah blah. The girl told me it wasn't true, they were having marital issues and he was grasping at straws, that my fiancé texted her 2 years before wishing her happy birthday and that was it. Fiancé felt like the husband was trying to cause problems between us, it was a MESS. I believe him, and we did move on, but it started a perpetual cycle of blows ups and disconnect.
Basically, we're just not happy right now. I feel like he put a ring on my finger as a band aid; he feels like I have issues from my past marriage which was really bad and traumatizing, and we both have built up resentments. We started going to therapy about a month ago, but I'm SO sick of arguing all the dang time that I just feel checked out.
I'm going through my second, very long custody battle with an awful ex = Stress.
He's buying a new business = Stress.
I work A LOT and work alternating nights & days = Resentment. He goes in when he wants, and leaves early every day to play golf = Resentment.

Yesterday, his dad called him asking to meet and talk because he's just seemed stressed and unhappy lately. Fiancé told him he was fine, but his dad asked if everything was ok in the relationship. Not that it should be a surprise, we've both told each other that we're sick of the arguing, it's distanced us a lot and I don't know if we can repair what's been damaged just in the last couple months.

Do I cancel and we go our separate ways? Do we cancel and just try to work on our relationship and revisit engagement later? Do we keep trudging ahead and try to get out of this very deep slump?!

The Wedding.

Wedding is in Cabo next year, Save the Dates have gone out and a few family members have already booked. I feel HORRIBLE, but I just can't go through with it knowing how miserable we both are. If we decide to work on our relationship (big IF) and decide later to get married, we can elope, but I'm scared that we can't repair what all the arguing has done.
I did make a FB event page for everyone invited to the wedding, initially just to ask questions and get excited about the trip. Should I use it to announce that we've called off the wedding? How do I explain this to people? What do I do? I feel so ashamed and guilty.

13 Comments

Latest activity by Jennifer, on September 30, 2019 at 3:01 PM
  • Cyndy
    Master May 2019
    Cyndy ·
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    Wow that’s a lot to think about. First let me say that I’m sorry your going through this. Counseling can be a huge help IF you both want this to work. If both of you are not 100% in then part now and move on. If you want to work it out I would say to postpone the wedding and focus on the relationship. You don’t want to start a marriage on rocky ground because being married won’t fix it. The question you have to ask yourself is.....is this what I really want? And then he needs to ask himself the same thing. Wishing you the best of luck.
    • Reply
  • M
    Dedicated October 2019
    M ·
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    If people have booked, I think you will have to speak directly with those people before just making an announcement.

    As as far as whether or not you should do it, only you know that. Being that you’re asking how you should cancel the wedding, it sounds like you’ve already made the decision.

    i know it’s got to be tough and I wish the best for you. Good luck.
    • Reply
  • Jess
    Expert October 2019
    Jess ·
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    I’m getting married next month after we cancelled our original wedding date and rescheduled so we could work on our stuff together. Best decision we ever made for our relationship. Our relationship from before was horrible and after working on a lot and having some extra time we have an amazing relationship. i would always say to work on stuff first before you do something you can’t undo!
    • Reply
  • Chandra
    Master May 2019
    Chandra ·
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    I wouldn't go on with the wedding if you're considering cancelling. It's a big red flag.
    I wouldn't necessarily split immediately either. Maybe take some time to cool off and try to get back into that space where you were before the engagement. And if you cant get there after some time of healing and working through things, then maybe it's time to call it quits.
    Weddings are stressful, buying a new business is stressful, sounds like theres a lot of tension in your lives at the moment.
    • Reply
  • L. Thomson
    Expert October 2020
    L. Thomson ·
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    Personally, I would postpone the wedding. It sounds like there is way too much stress going on. Im sure if you explain with the new business and custody (only if people are aware of this) is too much stress at the moment. If you both decide on therapy, then that's fine as long as you both are willing to work on the relationship. It can't be one sided. It also would help for individual therapy. Would be good to work on past wessing trauma and might help you find clarity. A separation is a big step and I would truly examine your feelings and the feelings of your fiance before making this decision.
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  • Cher Horowitz
    Master December 2019
    Cher Horowitz ·
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    I think you have every right to postpone the wedding until you and FH get on the same page. Marriage is a huge decision that shouldn't be taken lightly. Cancelling the wedding now is much better and less expensive than getting a divorce

    • Reply
  • H
    Devoted November 2019
    Heather ·
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    If it's a year away, can you just stop planning for a few months and work on the counseling? You have time to cancel it a little later. Just a thought.
    • Reply
  • L
    Just Said Yes April 2020
    Laura ·
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    It’s really only 6 months away, it’s the end of March. And since it’s a destination wedding in Cabo, people are anxious to book the resort and flights.
    Some have already booked, and I can’t do anything about that, but I don’t want to let anyone else waste their money.
    I feel so terrible.
    • Reply
  • L
    Just Said Yes April 2020
    Laura ·
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    Thank you all for your advice and support. I truly do appreciate it.
    Keep it comin!!! Talking it out has actually helped more than I thought it would 😘
    • Reply
  • J
    Master 0000
    Judith ·
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    Cancel the wedding. It takes more than 6 months to figure things out, and have a steady, good relationship for a while before considering marriage again, or not. Write a brief apology note, saying you have cancelled the wedding, that you are sorry if you caused people problems with bookings they must cancel. You can print 30 or more of the same thing, since this is more a notice. Any plain stationery or note and will do. Then see if you will try counseling, or just separate. I am sorry you are having such a hard time. Together or apart, you need to get out from under all the fighting. It is too much for you, and not what you want for your kids
    • Reply
  • Jennifer
    VIP August 2021
    Jennifer ·
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    I would cancel the wedding, but not the relationship. There is something there that made you say yes and him propose in the first place! Concentrate on counseling, you concentrate on custody, he needs to concentrate on the new business. Let the kids see each other often. There is too much stress in your lives right now to plan a destination wedding. If you guys need a break, take a break and come back in a counseling setting. Adding all this stress is going to make things a lot worse. Once things slow down, revisit the idea of a wedding together. I hope it all works out! Smiley heart

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  • L
    Just Said Yes April 2020
    Laura ·
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    Thank you all so much for your support. We’ve called off the wedding, decided to stay together and work on our relationship.
    I don’t know how to get back to a good place now, after so much arguing and hurt but we’re both dedicated to trying.
    • Reply
  • Jennifer
    VIP August 2021
    Jennifer ·
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    We're here for you! Smiley heart Thanks for the update!

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