Growing up I always saw my mother do most of the housework even though both my parents worked full time. Now that I am older I see that this is common in a lot of heterosexual marriages. I have seen wives do their husbands laundry, clean up their mess, and cook them dinner every night as if they are a child. I believe there is nothing wrong with doing these things if the husband works full time and you agree to take care of the house, but it’s wrong when you are both full time. At home responsibilities should be split 50/50.
We become so used to doing things around the house especially when that’s what our moms, grandmas, and every woman before us was taught to do. Sometimes we don’t even notice we are doing it because it’s almost an instinct. You don’t want to live in a messy house so you just end up doing it and forgetting about it later. This is why it’s so hard to change this because we become accustom to it.
If you are sick of coming home after a long day of work just to do more work at home we can take the steps to change this. This is especially hard when you both have your routines, but we can’t be doing everything around the house. It’s time to stand up for yourself and stop cleaning his underwear for him!
I believe there are simple ways you can go about this like talking to your partner and expressing that you want them to start doing more stuff around the house. If you don’t think you should have to tell your partner this there are some other routes you can take. This may leave your house messy, but it should get your point across. Stop cleaning up after him whether it’s food, clothes, or garbage leave it there and don’t say anything. It is not your responsibility to clean up after them or tell them to clean up after themselves. They will either start cleaning up their mess because it will get too messy or they will bring it up to you. If they bring it up to you stand your ground!
I understand that communication is key to a relationship, but should we really have to tell grown adults to clean up after themselves? It can be hard standing up for yourself and asking more from someone, but we deserve more than we think. Having them help more around the house is the least we can ask for. We can change this expectation and this sexist stereotype by expecting more from the men around us. Would you try going on strike from housework in your home? To help make a change share this post with women you know.
