Tuesday 23 February 2010

I've Won The Lottery!


No I haven't won THE lottery.
Much better than that.
The lottery of life has come up trumps.
At last.
Today I asked my husband how his day at work went.
"Brilliant," was his response.
This is the man who has spent the past five years fighting his employers - a large Government agency.
He has been victimised, discrimated against, bullied and ridiculed.
No, he didn't work for Gordon Brown but as a result of his treatment he has been off sick with depression, anxiety and panic attacks many, many times.
And I cannot begin to tell you the effect that has had on our home life.
On at least three occasions our marriage almost ended as the pressure he was under created a monster.
Many times I begged him to forget the case, leave the job or just get on with it.
None of that advice was particularly welcome or helpful.
Last year he took his employers to an Employment Tribunal (ET) and won.
Nobody has ever managed to take this organisation to an ET before, let alone win.
It took the organisation three months to respond with a letter (on Christmas Eve) that said, in a nutshell "you may have won but tough."
In a few days time his employers have to return to the ET panel for a Remedy Hearing in which they show what amends they have made.
And lo and behold on Friday evening (my birthday, as it happens), around 6pm, he got a call from a senior member of the orgnisation offering him a new post.
Today he went back to work and he has just called me from his new office.
In a new area.
And he loves it.
I have never, ever heard my husband use the world "brilliant" about his work before.
Not ever.
I don't need to win THE lottery because getting the man I married back, seeing the man I love happy can never top how I feel right now.


Today I wore:
Boots - Dorothy Perkins
Skirt and Shirt - Marks and Spencer
Wrap - Joe Browns

37 comments:

  1. That's wonderful! I'm so thrilled for both you and your husband. It's tough knowing that the person you love is so unhappy, especially when that unhappiness affects you both. Congratulations!

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  2. Congrats to both of you! I love when good things happen to good people - you should go out and celebrate!

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  3. That's wonderful news... I'm glad he's back. xoxo

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  4. You have no idea how big the grin is on my face! I am so happy for you both! What wonderful news- we've been routing for you (though we never knew the whole story) and all I can say is I am SO glad things have finally worked out to a happy ending. :D

    oh- and very pretty outfit! I <3 blue, as you know ;)

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  5. That is fabulous! Glad he's back! I've been meaning to tell you I really want to do the capsule wardrobe challenge, but I will be on vaca until the 1st and don't think I can pull it together! Next season, definitely!!! I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with :)

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  6. As someone who seems to share the same ssymptoms, but in a profession where you can't really do anything about it, I am SOOOOO ahppy for you and your husband. congratulations and prayers to yu both!

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  7. Awesome Jane,
    Nothing is better than seeing the light after a long struggle. And...seeing someone you love happy! What a wonderful lottery prize you won!

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  8. Doesn't get much better than that!

    I'm happy for both of you.

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  9. Hi there-that is just the best news ever, its so hard when your partner gets treated like this and it has such an adverse effect on his life, your life and your family. I am so pleased for the both of you.

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  10. What wonderful news. Having self gone through panic attacks, anxiety and depression and pulled myself up from the hole, just seeing the same thing happening to my younger daughter, I think i have a good view of what you as a family have gone through. Now, when the sky is clear, enjoy it! Best wishes !

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  11. Aw, that is such wonderful news. It's so great to hear how happy is after all he has gone through.

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  12. Congratulations! Much much better than winning THE lottery. Enjoy your 'new' life!!!

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  13. So happy for your husbands new lease on life!

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  14. Congrats girl! I know how you feel about your hubby, need to get my Fiance a good new job that he loves ASAP.

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  15. Fantastic news, good job your marriage was strong enough to survive!

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  16. That's great news, it'll make a huge difference to you both. Here's to the future!

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  17. Awesome news - I'm so happy for him and you!

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  18. That story made me SO happy!
    I too was a victim of abuse in the work place, but definitely too cowardly to fight it, instead I quit.... I wish I had the balls your husband did! He's a true workplace hero :)

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  19. I'm so happy for you! When people are unhappy at work, their whole lives suffer. It's amazing that he will be able to relax and concentrate more on his home life now. I'm so glad he got out of a bad situation.

    xx

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  20. im loving ure blog and i love this outfit! super adorable! and congrats on ure hubbies accomplishment. im happy that ure happy! :-)

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  21. Hello, I stumbled upon your open and honest blog and I so enjoyed reading many of your posts, they are rich and varied. I'm very glad to have found you, and equally glad that you and your husband are on track, I'm sure he will love you even more for standing by him...

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  22. That is fantastic, I'm so happy for you both.

    Btw, I am going to participate in the Capsule Wardrobe Challenge

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  23. LOVE this wrap sweater. Color and style.

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  24. Wow - I am so overwhelmed by the large response and the kind thoughts. And for those of you who have been in a similar position my heart goes out to you. My husband's decision to stay and fight was right for him but for those of you who walked away that was the right thing for you to do. While I feel great now , nothing, NOTHING will ever give me back those five years of a harmonious family life.

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  25. So great for you both. You both really deserve it after all the fighting and bad times. I'm sorry for what you' missed in the past years but I really admire someone that can fight for his rights like this. It's so rare in these in which it is much easier to run away than fighting. Ciao. A. PS As far I can gather from your blog, I really think you won the lottery when you met your husband!

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  26. That's wonderful, Jane! I'm so happy for you!

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  27. Congratulations, that's so lovely. Anything of this kind can be such a huge drain, that 'brilliant' word was definitely music to your ears!

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  28. I'm so happy for him! Not many can go through this and still come out on top. Good for both of you!

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  29. That's something to celebrate for sure.

    I need that blue sweater tho.

    Darla

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  30. You are both so rich. Congratulations to him and to you. In some of your blog posts last year I was concerned about how unhappy you sounded. It is so good to see you happy. Well done and congratulations again.
    Mervat
    xx

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  31. *Grin* What great news! Your post has brightened my day, I love it when the good guy wins :-) Obviously you can't get back those terrible 5 years but you can be thankful you have a good strong relationship with your husband that will surely only be better for the hardships you have had to endure lately. You must be very proud of him and he of you :-) Big hugs ((xxoo))

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  32. Those are wonderful news, both for your huband and for you.I'm very happy for you both.
    Hope from now on is all a sea of roses :)

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  33. Hi! This pulover is cool, very beautiful colour! :)

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  34. Sorry I'm a bit behind on blogging at the moment - big congrats to the whole family.

    x

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  35. Hi! This pulover is cool, very beautiful colour

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