My wife’s obsession with our online image is making us miserable

DEAR DEIDRE: A MEAL out with the kids turned into carnage after my wife got her phone out.

It’s always the same. She freaks if she doesn’t get the perfect photograph.

She and I are both 39. We have two daughters, aged eight and five.

I own a successful scaffolding business which allows my wife to stay home and look after our girls.

She is totally into her social media and has started to get quite a following from what’s seen to be our “perfect life”.

It’s all far from the truth, though. She’s obsessed with our image more than anything else.

We took the children to this local restaurant for my birthday.

As usual, the girls looked pretty, with white dresses and their long, curly hair. But when my wife took out her phone to photograph us all, she became angry because I wasn’t showing my teeth.

Then she yelled at me for spilling a little beer on my shirt.
It’s a recurring theme.

A dinner with family should be light-hearted and living in the moment. Instead, it’s all about Instagram.

DEIDRE SAYS:  Your wife wants to portray this lovely life but ironically, in her pursuit to present a perfect picture, she’s actually damaging your family relationships.

My guess is that she had an unhappy childhood and never felt worthy.

Now she’s financially secure, she wants to show the world she’s made it, but her behaviour is upsetting and damaging for your daughters.

In a quiet moment, explain how her obsession with Instagram is making you feel and is giving the wrong message to the kids.

Suggest an evening out with no photos. If she says no, suggest you both have counselling to address the issue. Tavistockrelationships.org (020 7380 1975) can help.

Pictures posed by models.