How My Husband 'Betrayed' Me

Ishita Singh
Updated

Since most gay Americans do not have the right to legally marry a same-sex partner, some enter mixed-orientation marriages, in which one partner is straight and the other is gay. HuffPost Live host Nancy Redd led a discussion on mixed-orientation marriages, in which one guest warned that if couples enter matrimony without being completely honest, it can lead to betrayal and disaster.

Comedian and HuffPost blogger Juliet Jeske was unknowingly married for 7 years to a gay man. "My ex lied to me for years, and pretty much had a secret identity for years," she told Redd. "The amount of broken trust there was, was so great that there's no way that I could just say, 'oh well, we'll have a messed-up hybrid marriage that doesn't make sense, filled with lies, deception, broken promises."

Jeske explained that her ex-husband married her because he wanted a traditional life.

"He really wanted the white picket fence, the children, the stability. Had homosexuality been more accepted -- had homosexuality just been another way of life for him, another choice for him -- I don't think he would have chosen to put me through what he put me through."

Joining Jeske and Redd in the conversation were Amity Buxton, founder of The Straight Spouse Network in Oakland, Calif., and Carren Strock, author ofMarried Women Who Love Women.

Watch the full conversation at HuffPost Live.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.