A Reddit post in r/BoyDinnerDiaries describing what the poster called the possible end of a 20-year marriage has drawn more than 8,100 upvotes and hundreds of responses. With it was a photo of a homemade dinner of flat iron steak, potatoes, onions, jalapeño and a Jack and Coke. The original poster described the emotional state at home. "A week ago I was in a hotel because 'she's a different person now' and doesn't think this is working," the user wrote.
The poster noted that the past year had been especially difficult. "Twenty years of marriage. Two kids," he wrote.
According to the post, his wife had been grieving the loss of a family member while going through perimenopause, and their children had needed more support than usual. He said the extra strain has him often feeling exhausted and lonely despite trying to support his family.
He added that when he suggested marriage counseling, it led to a conversation in which his wife told him she felt like a different person and questioned the future of their relationship. "I confessed that I was afraid she'd decide she didn't need me again and there wasn't much response," he wrote. "Hopefully it's a blip. I'm really trying."
The post ended on a somber note: "I fear change. But eventually I'll have to accept it. This is over. And that's terrible."
The story has more than 3,600 upvotes and hundreds of comments from Reddit users. Many encouraged the poster to seek counseling for himself and focus on caring for his children regardless of the relationship. "If you can cook that dinner, you can handle those," one wrote. Others shared similar experiences of marriages ending after a decade or more together: "I go to therapy every week, and it's helped me tremendously."
Much of the discussion was on perimenopause, which the original poster said his wife was going through.
Several commenters, many of whom said they had gone through perimenopause themselves, urged the poster's wife not to make decisions about the marriage while experiencing significant hormonal changes. One commenter, a 45-year-old woman, wrote that perimenopause "isn't just about hot flashes and fatigue" and suggested consulting a clinician.
The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the events described in this post. The details above reflect the account shared in r/BoyDinnerDiaries. The poster's identity, the identity of those described in the post, and the medical details mentioned have not been confirmed.
