When We Sat Down to Give Back, We Discovered We Were All Healing Too
We came together for a cause— 10 women, most of us strangers, gathered around a table in Dallas to talk about giving back and helping those who are hungry. But what started as a conversation about service turned into something much deeper— something raw, emotional, and painfully familiar.
As we talked, one by one, we realized that all 10 of us shared a heartbreaking truth: our husbands had cheated on us.
Some of us stayed. Some of us left. And some of us are still trying to find a way to forgive, not just them, but ourselves — for loving, for trusting, for believing that it couldn’t happen to us.
Cheating doesn’t have a gender, a race, or a specific type. It’s universal. And it’s not just infidelity— it’s a form of abuse. Emotional. Psychological. Financial. Each one of us carried scars that weren’t visible but cut deep.
Half of us even knew who “the other woman” was. That realization hurt in ways that words can’t express. It’s wild how some men can justify betrayal so easily, breaking up families and destroying homes for a moment’s pleasure. They ask for forgiveness, expect us to move on, and then slip right back into the same patterns. And when we pull away to protect ourselves, they get angry— as if our pain is the problem.
What hit the hardest was when the conversation shifted to health. Every single one of us had gone to get checked. Two had BV, and three tested positives for STDs or STIs. That’s when the gravity of it truly set in. Cheating doesn’t shatter hearts — it can jeopardize lives.
Ladies, please — protect yourselves. Pay attention to the red flags. Don’t ignore your intuition. You might think you man is on a “boys’ trip,” working late, or just out with friends. But truth be told my husband came home like clockwork every night — acting as if everything was normal — and he was still cheating.
Take care of your heart, your mind, and your body. Because cheating isn’t just betrayal. It’s a violation of your safety, your peace, and your trust.
Cheating is a form of domestic violence.