Field report:

I have been taking the red pill for a few months now ever since my DW has said she is not in love with me and never will be again. (Background note: for years before this point we were increasingly miserable with each other.) As part of this, I have been following the 12 stages of dread, albeit slowly. Here is what I have seen:

  • Our children want to go to the gym with me since I started lifting, even the one who only wants to play video games all day; even the baby says he can't wait until he is old enough to go. Dad-confidence-booster FTW!

  • At a party recently, several wives were looking at photos of really well developed men. A staunch feminist friend of mine said she didn't like the look of any of them "because it looks too ... I don't know"; quoting The Book of Pook, I said, "Perfect is boring"? She exclaimed, "Yes, that's it. Exactly! So-called perfect bodies look too fake. It's disgusting."

  • While subtly trying to teach DS #1 what I have been learning, I have mentioned a few things in ear shot of DD and she has confirmed each one for him. (DD and I often butt heads, making the agreement and confirmation that much more remarkable.) Me: "Men and women are just bigger forms of toddlers playing in the sandbox" (TBoP again); DD: "Yep, keep us entertained and we are happy." Me: "Girls relax when demonstrate an ability to lead and to so with both confidence and humility." DD: "Yep, we don't want to have to baby you."

  • DW has been increasingly playful and thoughtful of late. She still hasn't said she is in love with me but she's acting an awful lot like it. No physical interaction yet though. No matter. I keep moving on. Either she will change as I grow or I will outgrow her, a sad but not impossible prospect.

  • After years of complaining about large portions of my personality, as I have adopted a more reserved monk-mode set of habits, she has acted more and more like I used to. It's gotten to the point DW said the other day, "Did you an mum switch bodies or something?"

  • Still working on losing fat; trying a high fiber, high protein vegan diet in order to feel full and force my body to access the fat reserves. Walking everywhere worthwhile, using the car only when needed.

  • Cut out alcohol completely. Not for everyone but seems to help me. I have a side project on which I have been able to give a good deal of time to now I am dry.

  • Still have issues with temper; trying to meditate daily to try to cope with it.

  • I notice my SIL and her DD definitely fit the AWALT mold. The more I act (but not talk) said DW fits that mold the more cheerful she is, making my days easier.

  • My FIL said the other day, "If I don't piss my wife off once a day, she won't be happy." MIL got angry when she heard him say that. I asked, "Is he wrong, though?" She wouldn't answer the question. I asked four times and she absolutely would not answer. So much for the advice of "always make her happy" I heard so much as a teen. ;-)

TL;DR: On my way; good signs so far; very encouraged.