Kimblesblue wrote:
My partner has AS and I’m NT, I’m struggling! He is the bread winner in our relationship but insists that I pay more than I can afford towards household bills, leaving in the red as soon as I’m paid. He works hard but from home on his own business but has plenty of spare time to do things he wants to, I understand he like his alone time. He seems to think because I pay less I should do ALL the house work, that’s fine I don’t like the fact I can’t pay half so I feel it’s my contribution. However, he leaves everything for me to pick up, yogurt pots, towels, clothes etc, he’s never so much as made me a cup of tea, it’s wearing me down especially when he works so much and doesn’t spend time with me other than at bed time. When we try to discuss it he gets very defensive (we are clearly on different pages, maybe even in different books) I love my partner, support him as much as I can and want us to work but how can I make him see that me just going to work all day then and coming home and cleaning is unfair, when he likens our arrangement to paying for a subscription and not receiving the full packaged? If I don’t do everything he says I maybe I should go back to my mums. Which I find hurtful when I do so much. He only focuses on what I don’t do.
I think as you love your partner it might be worthwhile getting a third party like a marriage counsellor to provide objective feedback to both of you as you speak openly about each of your respective concerns.
This might provide an opportunity for your partner to pick up on any bias or lack of insight he has into how you are feeling.
I am a little concerned about his telling you to pay more toward household bills. This might stem from his anxiety over whether you both can afford your current lifestyle or his aspirations of how you both will live in the future. Asking a partner to pull their weight financially is unfair if you don't have the means. If he is making this an issue during counselling then I would question what his concept of love amounts to?
On the other matter on spending time with you; his Aspergers might make him more conducive to "me time" and he might also need his space to run the home business without distraction (I kind of relate to this as I used to work from home for about 5 years and was easily distracted if my wife asked me to do chores). You may need to be a little tolerant here but I think you are justified in asking him (and counselling might be the time to tell him) to be more attentive to spending more together. You both don't have kids so in that regard he really doesn't have an excuse.