Need advice - NOT looking for judgment but honest advice

Cassidy

My husband and I have been married for almost two years now and are expecting our first baby in August.

Our marriage hasn’t been easy but we love each other and are dedicated to this marriage. The reason for this post is because there have been a few incidents that have happened a handful of times and are considerably alarming to me. I need other opinions because maybe I’m being over dramatic???

(History): I’m an individual who struggles with overstimulation (I believe this happens to everyone to some extent). However, I specifically get overstimulated by physical contact. My husband, however, is very physically affectionate. We both brought our own type of trauma into this marriage and are working on it. He received a lack of affection as a child, so he really looks for that in me. My mother was a druggy and exposed me to male figures who abused me as a child. That said, I have had to really work on physical affection. A lot.

I am conscious of this for him and let him practically lay on me every night before he goes to bed because it comforts him, kiss me 7 million times when he gets in the house which is just his way of showing affection, and all of the other physical touches that make him feel connected to me. I accept this about my husband and in ways am learning to appreciate it because he makes me feel beautiful but sometimes too much is just too much…

(Incident): He knows I struggle with becoming over stimulated from touch. However, last night he was on another kick. Being extremely touchy, slapping my rear, hugging on me, grabbing on me, wanting to play wrestle, etc.. I participated with him and played back with him until I really couldn’t handle it anymore. We were safe considering I’m pregnant but I told him I was done and really wanted to stop touching. He wouldn’t listen. He just kept pulling me and grabbing on me and it literally sent me into a full blown panic attack. I was crying and curled up in a ball in the corner of the bed. Still crying, I tried to calmly tell him that I really needed him to stop because I was over stimulated and I couldn’t handle anymore. I told him I needed space. He proceeded to grab and push and mess with me and I just started screaming. I don’t know why. I felt like I needed to crawl out of my body. I wanted to just jump in the shower and scrub down for hours. I felt so dirty and just wanted him to stop touching me. He refused to take his hand off of me and told me none of this made any sense and he wasn’t going to stop because it was stupid. He asked if I was gonna teach our kids to be like this and said “man you really have some childhood trauma.” Ironically, it’s true and he knows about it. Eventually, he left me alone and I was able to just sit and calm down but I feel so violated… This isn’t the first time this has happened it’s the third or fourth. I want to care of his needs and make sure he’s not feeling neglected, but sometimes I just can’t handle the touching and he NEVER listens. Some days I feel like a piece of meat. Am I being irrational? He’s not interested in any kind of counseling… What can I do to help us?