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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to wonder why my mother does this?

74 replies

Georgepigisacleverdude · 22/02/2011 23:12

I honestly do not know whether my mum IBU or I am. Maybe some families find this familiar?

Growing up, my mum seemed to think that I spent all of my spare time screwing half the men in town. Even if I told Mum I was going to Friend A's, and gave her the phone number, she would never ring, but would accuse me of screwing half the men in town. It makes me feel sick to even think about it, the way I feel I was seen by my mum as having nothing more to offer in any liaison/relationship than sex. Sad

I know my mum felt she had little to offer but sex, from the things she's said over the years, things I don't want to hear really.

Anyway, now I have grown up, and have 2DC. My eldest DS has always been my mums favourite grandchild and she has spoilt him over the years to the point where she undermined me to gain favour with him. Now he is an adult, I have noticed more and more that my mother sometimes asks him things which I feel are inappropriate and she fawns over him. I cant describe it in any other way. If DS is home when she comes round, she will ignore everything I say and focus on him. Makes me feel like the least interesting person on the planet. She seems obsessed with him if I'm truthful. She then fires 1001 questions at him, because she has to know what he's doing at all times, and who he's going out with, and what he's going to wear out blah blah blah.
She cried for weeks when DS refused to move in with her when he went to uni, because she is 4 miles closer to the uni than I am. She kept saying how he had hurt her emotionally so deeply that she couldn't ever forgive him, and talked of how she'd never ask another man to move in with her again because men only ever hurt you. Hmm
She spoke of him as if he were a partner. She rang all his friends, and asked them why he didn't want to be with her.
Anyhow, apart from all of that, which thankfully has died down for the most part now, she asks him what I feel are inappropriate questions, like 'What was your 1st sexual experience like?' DS goes red and mumbles 'dunno' and mum then probes further 'Are you still a virgin, I cant believe you're still a virgin, you must have gone so far with a girl by now, if i were younger I'd butter your toast in the morning' Hmm
When I intervene and usually say something like 'Jeez mum, even I dont ask him that, leave off, he doesn't want to talk about it' Mum just replys that she wants to know. WHY THOUGH

My mum also makes innuendos with me. She'll say 'why didnt you answer the phone earlier, did you have the rugby team round?' or 'In the summer, is it going to be hot and steamy in your house' to which I reply, depends what the temperature is outside.
Mum then says 'do you really not get it?' I say no i dont. I can tell by her voice that she truly thinks I have missed her point, then she spells it out to me in a patronising way.
If she knows a woman is in a relationship with a man and she cant work the realtionship out, if the man is younger, or the man is better paid, she always has to lower the tone to 'i know how she keeps him, she lays on her back, spreads her legs, screws him all day and night'

Make me feels so sick when she says this. Has anyone else got a parent like this? And why are they like this? What is the best way to handle this without falling out with my mum hopefully?
She seems to place so much of a womans worth on what she can do for a man, and yes, I have appallingly low self esteem and i struggle to understand why anyone, male or female would be interested in me as a person.

OP posts:
BorisTheBold · 22/02/2011 23:15

Erm, your mum sounds weird and totally imappropriate. I don't have the best relationship with my mum, but she would never come out with anything like that.

Have you ever pulled her up on it?

BorisTheBold · 22/02/2011 23:15

*inappropriate

muddleduck · 22/02/2011 23:16

You sound lovely.

Your mum sounds like a loon :(

twolittlemonkeys · 22/02/2011 23:16

Totally weird and inappropriate. If my mum was coming out with stuff like that I would definitely be distancing myself and children from her, sorry.

moondog · 22/02/2011 23:16

OMG.
That is sickening.

squeakytoy · 22/02/2011 23:17

Your mum has issues... big ones by the sounds of it. Its definately not you.

Inappropriate sexual questions are just weird...

DerangedSibyl · 22/02/2011 23:17

Firstly, protect your son.

Stop her mid sentense when she starts asking inappropriate questions, and spell out to her why you've stopped her.

Say "Mum, that's an inappropriate question to ask your grandson, and I want you to stop talking about sex to my children or you'll have to leave."

And if she starts talking about sex to you, say "I don't want to talk about sex. We can talk about something else, or you can leave/I can go home"

It's hard to change the statud quo, I know - but you can't change who she is, you can only change how you respond to her behavior, and either her behavior will change or you won't be near enough to her for it to affect you.

NotANaturalGeordie · 22/02/2011 23:17

Shock at your mother. Totally unreasonable and embarrassing questions/way to behave for a grandmother with her grandson. I'm sorry I have no advice for you as I assume that you have already tried talking to her about her attitude.

Did/do you know her mother? I managed to understand (if not resolve) my mother issues by finding out about her background as she grew up. It led to a lot of 'oh that's why she says that' moments which have made it easier to tolerate her.

Rosmarin · 22/02/2011 23:19

I don't have advice but this sounds horrendous. The interaction with your DS is creepy and inappropriate! The only correlation I can see is that my own Grandmother used to fawn over my brother but disliked me from birth. It was because she'd only had a daughter (my mother) but really wanted a son/even had a traumatic experience losing a little boy... It was never explained to me. Do you have brothers?

PigValentine · 22/02/2011 23:19

Your mum has serious issues, and you have unfortunately suffered as a result.

I wouldn't worry about hurting her feelings in pulling her up on it. And I don't want to go into detail as to why, but I especially feel for your DS who I'm sure will have felt extremely disturbed and uncomfortable - focus on protecting his and your other DC's feelings if you are having trouble being strong for yourself.

edam · 22/02/2011 23:20

Good grief. Poor you, and poor ds, having to deal with someone like that.

HecateQueenOfWitches · 22/02/2011 23:20

I'd say that she's got a serious problem.

Imagine this.

"Growing up, my dad seemed to think that I spent all of my spare time screwing half the men in town. Even if I told dad I was going to Friend A's, and gave him the phone number, he would never ring, but would accuse me of screwing half the men in town.

Now my son is an adult, I have noticed more and more that my dad sometimes asks him things which I feel are inappropriate and he fawns over him. he seems obsessed with him if I'm truthful. he then fires 1001 questions at him, because he has to know what he's doing at all times, and who he's going out with, and what he's going to wear out blah blah blah.

he cried for weeks when DS refused to move in with him when he went to uni, because he is 4 miles closer to the uni than I am. he kept saying how he had hurt him emotionally so deeply that he couldn't ever forgive him,

he spoke of him as if he were a partner. he rang all his friends, and asked them why he didn't want to be with him.

he asks him what I feel are inappropriate questions, like 'What was your 1st sexual experience like?' DS goes red and mumbles 'dunno' and dad then probes further 'Are you still a virgin, I cant believe you're still a virgin, you must have gone so far with a girl by now, if i were younger I'd butter your toast in the morning'

My dad also makes innuendos with me. he'll say 'why didnt you answer the phone earlier, did you have the rugby team round?' or 'In the summer, is it going to be hot and steamy in your house' to which I reply, depends what the temperature is outside.

dad then says 'do you really not get it?' I say no i dont. I can tell by his voice that he truly thinks I have missed his point, then he spells it out to me in a patronising way.

If he knows a woman is in a relationship with a man and he cant work the realtionship out, if the man is younger, or the man is better paid, he always has to lower the tone to 'i know how she keeps him, she lays on her back, spreads her legs, screws him all day and night'

Make me feels so sick when he says this.

----------

If you change your mum - to your dad - what do you see?

Because I see a perverted person who is overly sexual with their offspring (and children of same)

GiddyPickle · 22/02/2011 23:20

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

abenstille · 22/02/2011 23:21

gosh, your mum does sound strange - bump

KristinaM · 22/02/2011 23:22

Why are you allowing your mother to sexually harass your son in your own home? Her questioning of him is totally out of order. And why on earth does she have his friends phone numbers?

sue52 · 22/02/2011 23:23

I know she's your mother, but I would keep away from her and I would not want her anywhere near my children. You don't mention your Father, was she alone when you grew up?

nurseblade · 22/02/2011 23:24

Hope you don't find comment offensive but I did wonder whether your mum had been sexually abused in her youth. Her boundaries around sex seem very messed up.

ddubsgirl · 22/02/2011 23:25

Hecate i was thinking that too,had it ben a male asking you would be thinking pedeo!sounds like your mum has some serious sex issues.

abbierhodes · 22/02/2011 23:26

Imagine if the genders were reversed here, and this was a grandfather speaking like this to his granddaughter. I wouldn't allow my children near her, this is a kind of sexual abuse I'm sure.

Stac2011 · 22/02/2011 23:26

that is such inappropriate behaviour. Have you spoke to your son about the way she acts? I would have went mad if my gran was calling all my friends. Maybe you should tell your son to tell your mum those questions are wrong and they make him uncomfortable. Maybe coming from him she'll listen.

As for the things she says to you. I would ask why she has the idea you sleep around. Explain you find it offensive that she makes you out as some sort of tart. I was always told if you cant say anything nice dont say it at all, give your mum that advice. Dont want to sound rude but she sounds strange and nasty.

abbierhodes · 22/02/2011 23:27

Ok, very slow one handed typing, didn't see all the other posts!

ddubsgirl · 22/02/2011 23:28

my dc nan doesnt have any of the boys friends numbers,why would your mum have them?

amiheartless · 22/02/2011 23:31

Aw big big hugs

your mothers is being VERY innapropriate, YANBU
just tell her straight she is freaking her grankids out and you

ddubsgirl · 22/02/2011 23:34

i think your son needs to tell her to back off aswell,if he wants to tell her anything then he will but until then butt out and stop asking its not right

Georgepigisacleverdude · 22/02/2011 23:40

Mum says she was abused as a child by her own father. Sad
She has had 2 abusive marriages, both severe DV, her last H beat us all. Mum shares no responsibility for this, feels under attack whenever I mention it in anyway. She will still obsess over her last H and say if she bumped into him in the street, she hopes he notices how well she has aged and still has pictures up of him. I find it very difficult to understand how she can spend so much mental energy on a man who kicked the crap out of her children, myself included and look back with rosetinted specs.
Mum only has daughters, no sons, my eldest was mum's 1st grandson and she enjoyed strangers thinking he was her son and threw a strop if i wanted to push his pram.
Mum's 1st H is my father. There is no love lost between my father and I. My mum does not often defend me to anyone including my obnoxious father.
I dont want to sound like a pity party but I am the black sheep of the family for not being married to my DC's father and for living in a council house, some of the time on benefits. My X was also abusive, not violent but abusive in every other way.
I feel self conscious even wearing a fitted t shirt and like to wear a jumper most of the time. I dont wear anything low cut because of the comments i know my mum will most likely say. I have recently bought myself some make up, i'm not sure i will ever wear it in front of my mum.
I wore some plum lipstick on a night out many years ago, and my mum said i had 'blowjob lips just like her'.
I feel if I dont cover up and be a plain jane, I'll invite these comments then I'll feel violated, but I'd love to dress up a little, to feel feminine and not dowdy and frumpy. Sad

OP posts: