A 35-year-old woman wrote to our editorial team, spilling her heart out. She acknowledged difficulty embracing the hard fact that her spouse had revealed his nasty attitude. According to her, he often criticizes her body odor, causing her mental distress. However, her rage grew as she learned more about her husband’s deceptive tactics, and we empathized intensely with her suffering.
The woman has always had an amazing relationship with her husband.
Lilly, a woman who reached out to us, expressed desperation about a problem in her otherwise happy household. She stated that she and her husband, George, have had a happy marriage for over a decade, and she has never seen him behave disrespectfully.
Lilly stated, “In fact, our marriage has always been founded on profound affection, intense passion for each other, mutual respect, and trust. I’ve always considered my connection with George to be really rewarding and ideal for me. He has consistently demonstrated himself to be a loving and caring husband.”
The classic struggle between Lilly and her mother-in-law ruined the otherwise joyful marriage. Lilly added, “I have always had a difficult relationship with my mother-in-law since I didn’t like her personality. She’s always been a very forceful and entitled person, and she truly believed that only her opinion mattered in any situation. And she enjoys interfering with other people’s private lives.
I tried to reconcile with her in some way and simply acted pleasantly throughout, which wasn’t a big concern for me because we didn’t see each other very often. George and I live in another nation, so the possibility of her meddling with our lives was low. So I just accepted that my mother-in-law will never become my second mother.”
Continuing her letter, Lilly explained that about a year ago, her husband’s demeanor changed dramatically. She said, “George began making unpleasant remarks about my body odor. And there was no evident explanation for it, no change in my health or lifestyle; everything had been fine until one day, when George began doing it. Every day, at least once, he would tell me that I stink and smell like body odor.”
Lilly reflected on the beginning of their relationship and remembered keeping careful hygiene routines. She described washing daily, using deodorant in the morning, and brushing her teeth three times per day. Despite continuously following these procedures, her hygiene practices have not changed since they first met. Nevertheless, George repeatedly made disparaging remarks about her personal hygiene repeatedly.
Lilly admitted, “I grew so concerned about my body smelling horrible that I began to shower three times a day and use a special powerful deodorant every hour (I even had a reminder on my phone). I used perfume and washed my teeth five times a day, whenever I ate or drank something other than water.”
Receiving unpleasant reminders about body odor on a daily basis from a loved one can be extremely distressing. Lilly admitted to being deeply hurt by George’s actions.
The woman wrote, “I thought I was going insane. I was confident that I did not smell awful throughout our relationship. And I didn’t think I smelt bad at the time, but it was obvious that I did smell bad to my husband. I’ve always been the type of person that discreetly sniffs their own armpits. I went to the doctor, and he said there was nothing wrong with my health.”
“The whole thing was getting to the point where I literally started asking my friends and family members to smell my armpits and to tell me honestly if I smelled bad,” Lilly says. “They all said I didn’t smell like body odor at all, one family member even said I smelled too clean like a lush store.”
One day, Lilly discovered the reason why she was smelling bad for her husband.
One day, Lilly unexpectedly discovered the truth about her husband’s strange conduct. She was so overcome with fear at that time that she avoided snuggling or kissing George whenever he addressed her imagined odor.
One morning, Lilly went for a walk while George stayed at home. She explained, “I walked out and promised George that I’d be returning in about 3 hours. I was thinking about going to see my sister and decided to walk there to get some fresh air when I got a horrible feeling. I decided to return home and lay down rather than walk, and I arrived around 30 minutes after leaving. Of course, George did not expect me to be back”
Lilly continues her narrative, saying, “Just because I felt awful, I entered the house quietly, trying not to make any extra noise with my keys, etc. I had a horrible headache, and every sound echoed in my head with increasing anguish. George didn’t hear me come in because he was on a video conference with his mother.” Lilly stated that George and her MIL were conversing loudly and appeared to be having an altercation. The woman was upset by the loud noises coming from George’s room, and she wanted to step in and ask him to put on headphones while talking to his mother. Then she understood they were talking about her.
Lilly said, “George was uncomfortably telling MIL that he’s bored up with this ‘smelly game’. He seemed worried, and he was saying that due of his comments about my body odor, we had stopped being intimate, and that I would no longer kiss him. His mother, in turn, advised him to be patient if he wanted to keep me with him. George’s father had always said such things to her, and it was a surefire method to keep a lady by your side. The woman was intended to stay with one guy for life because “she will feel too low to cheat, will be devoted only to you, and will always be fresh and clean.”
So, essentially, Lilly’s mother-in-law was instructing her son on how to deceive Lilly into staying with him, even revealing the despicable tactics his own father had used on her. Lilly was horrified by this revelation and enraged that George would use such disgusting means. The woman said, “George does not yet realize that I am aware of everything. I want a divorce, but not until I get revenge on him. I know that for many others, George’s acts would not be a major basis for divorce, but I just can’t picture spending the rest of my life with someone who uses ‘ smelly methods’ on a lady who loves him with all her heart.”
