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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Ex husband not allowing me contact 13 year old daughter

78 replies

user1499544885 · 06/09/2017 22:25

After a tie with my 13 year old daughter as I found out she had almost been having sex with a boy at school, I agreed with my ex husband she should live with him for a while as her behaviour as become disgusting. This was a week ago, the night after the argument he sent me a text stating that he was st the solicitors enquiringly about getting our contact order in place which I have had for five years where he has 8 overnight stays which he also has my sons 9,10. I was absolutely mortified and felt he had taken advantage of a difficult situation. Since then he has cut off all access for me it's my daughter, I have not seen or heard from her. I told the school of the situation, and today they rang to say he had her taped stating she wants no contact with me. I am absolutely devastated, no words can describe this pain. He threatened to gain access of my sons if I sought legal action. He promised he sort out her behaviour but instead as spoilt her and is promising her puppies etc. I have had a very good relationship with her up to three months ago where the school bad boy got involved with her. I feel she's being bribed by him and she's too vulnerable to see it. To top it off I have an ex mother in law who hated me from day one and has already tried to poison against me. I am so scared I have lost her, I am pulling my hair out with stress.

OP posts:
HiJenny35 · 07/09/2017 00:52

Truthfully I'd leave it, she isn't going to like the multiple bus trips to school and being away from her friends, he will get sick of taking her places, she will miss her brothers and she isn't silly and will see he's using her to hurt you. She will be back, give her space.

user1498240695 · 07/09/2017 00:54

Could you talk to Gingerbread... The charity that assists and advises single parents?

EamonnWright · 07/09/2017 00:56

She's just wanting to be centre of attention. As said above just leave it, she'll get bored once she realises you haven't put everything on hold to pander to her every whim.

user1499544885 · 07/09/2017 01:03

Smile that all I want!! Miss her so much, cheek, attitude and all !!

OP posts:
namechangedforthisreply · 07/09/2017 02:50

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Gorgosparta · 07/09/2017 06:19

It's been a nightmare as the step daughter is well mannered but sneaky my poor daughter always seems to be the one in trouble.

So you are aware of this, but moved her out instead of tackling the problem.

Tbh i dont think that driving her places is spoiling her. I also think the law unto herself bit is ridiculous. She didnt go above budget for her phone. You did. Then you hid it from your dh.

Tbh reading the thread I feel for the poor girl. It sounds like she isnt happy with you and your dh. There are problems in your house where her step sister is allowed to be portrayed as a saint, even though you know she isnt. And dd gets pulled on everything. Why have you not tackled this?

Her dad seems to be using her like a pawn. But has it occures to you that he is spoiling her because he genuinely feels thats the best way to make her feel better?

Hopefully her dad can keep her away from this boy. However placing all blame on a school bad boy, for the whole situation is just passing off responsibility.

Purplemac · 07/09/2017 07:26

It's obvious we are only getting one side of the picture. By sending your DD away you were admitting to her that you don't want to be responsible for her anymore - it should always be you and her dad sharing reaponsibility. She will feel completely abandoned. You've basically told her she's not your problem.

Imagine if it was the other way around your ex told you he didn't want to deal with her anymore, he had had enough, and sent her packing to you. And she then said she didn't want to see him. What would you do?

geekone · 07/09/2017 09:09

OP I feel for you it is easy for everyone to judge we are all good at that non AIBU. Whatever decision you made was going to be difficult your DD doesn't seem in a great place. Good luck.

AuntieStella · 07/09/2017 09:35

My reading of this is that you agreed with XH that she should live with him for a while. He and she seem to like this, so he is taking steps to vary the court order so it can continue.

As she has a phone, can you not reach her by call, text or email? You do need to talk to her.

You need to sort out with XH where she will be living, and this might change over the teen years. Living with him during term time as well as these last few weeks over the holidays might be a good solution (and she could perhaps come to you for 8 days a month). The dynamic in your household will change once you have enough bedrooms, and she perhaps need some the time and space to decide where she wants to be.

But the urgent task for both you and XH is to turn her away from the inappropriate early sexualised behaviour. Have you spoken to him about how much and what sort of contact she has had with this boy since she has been living with him?

The intention of the law is not to criminalise two 13 year olds (prosecutions are extremely rare for 13-15 yos unless there are aggravating factors) but they are far too young You and XH need to be talking about how you are going to be dealing with this, whichever household she is in at the time.

Damia · 07/09/2017 09:37

In normal circumstances staying with her dad a bit would have been a good thing but sounds like her dad is being a twat. I think seeing her at school giving her a letter is a good idea laying out that her dad wants her to stay and that you miss her and she is always welcome back if she can follow your house rules and her new room is waiting and that she can call you anytime she needs to. Then at least no matter what her dad has been saying to her she will know you're there still. I think you will just need to be patient after that though as not much else you can do.

user1499544885 · 07/09/2017 09:47

On reflection you see your own errors. I wish I could go back a week ago and change things. It was a bubbling of her repeated bad behaviour and a promise my ex would help out. I thought it would be good for her to live there as she seems unhappy here at the moment. He's got control of her phone, I can only contact her through him. I am scared to try to meet her in case it makes matters worse.when her and her step sister argued he made the problems ten times worse and exaggerated them instead of realising any girls of 13 in a house long term would have their ups and downs!! I think he's brain washing against me!! Do I just walk away and let him?? I don't think so she's been with me since birth and it's always easier for the non resident parent to criticise. I love her eight days a month, it's her decision where she lives but the no contact is killing me 😞

OP posts:
user1499544885 · 07/09/2017 09:49

I totally agree with what you have said. Thank you

OP posts:
bibliomania · 07/09/2017 09:52

Hi OP, you've had some harsh replies here. I can see why you wanted to make some change that would interrupt her worrying behaviour.

My dd is younger, so I haven't got a handle on teen girls yet (if anyone has). I'd be inclined to send her a letter, on paper, via the school, saying you love her and you miss her and she is always welcome back at any time, just say the word, but if she needs a bit of a break, that's fine too. And then let things settle down for a few weeks. Doesn't sound like she'll want to stay with her dad for the longterm.

worridmum · 07/09/2017 09:54

You do know going to the police will just mean both children will get in trouble as they are both breaking the law.

As long as she is willing they are both equally will in the wrong.

Boatmistress17 · 07/09/2017 10:05

Op I have been where you are with ds and drugs. . Df played Disney df throughout. Even said he didn't know why the police had lied to me about there being drugs at his house!! Ffs!!
He was expelled from school and I was the bad guy for getting the police involved when he was dealing drugs at 13!! School caught him and rang them also.
For a year, sent a happy birthday text, Xmas, he text the odd time. . Left them to it as mh wouldn't allow me anymore. .roll on til now and he lives full time with me, nc with df and is a happy balanced well behaved 16 yo. He is appalled to his behaviour. . And hs df for zero parenting. .
Patience op. I am sure your dd will be back very soon. .
Give exh enough rope and all that. .

Allthebestnamesareused · 07/09/2017 10:13

Although you haven't thrown her out in her eyes this is what she sees.

Your exH has taken advantage of the situation and encouraged her to stay .

However if you were to pursue this through the courts at her age they would listen to what she wants and at this stage I suspect she'd say to live at her Dad's.

I suspect he will soon get attitude etc from her in the same way you did. He will become bored/fed up with it too and you may find he brings her back. Alternatively once he does start imposing discipline she'll chose to come back.

I think just let her know you love her, miss her and that her room is always there for her and she'll be back of her own accord once the novelty of staying at Dad's wears off.

Cancel her phone contract!

TheRealBiscuitAddict · 07/09/2017 10:20

Seems you have multiple issues here. The first is that it is very evident that you and your ex clearly do not co parent your joint children, and this has enabled a situation where your DD has been able to choose to live with her dad over you, and he has supported it without feeling the need to discuss it with you.

The second issue is his reaction to the situation. It's realistically impossible to know what the real story is here, however, if a woman posted that her daughter or stepdaughter had moved in with her and wanted nothing to do with her father because he was trying to prevent her from seeing a boy and had agreed to her moving in, the overwhelming message would be that she should be supported and that all contact with the father should be ceased from now on if that was what she wanted, and that at thirteen she was old enough to make that decision for herself. At thirteen she is old enough to manipulate a situation to her advantage, however it also sounds as if she is living in a fairly chaotic household, and that living with her father may be a more settled environment for her to live in for now.

I am always a bit Confused when parents send a child to live with the other parent, as if they were still together that option would not be available to them, so why is it seen as an option when they're not together?

If she's manipulating the situation she will soon learn that doing so isn't going to bring her what she wants in the long-term. If her father hasn't seen much of her for previous years he's not likely to want to change this situation long-term. However, if there are deeper issues at play here these will come out if/when he goes to court. Does he currently pay you maintenance? Because if he does then altering the contact agreement will change that arrangement anyway, and going to court may be necessary either way.

"You do know going to the police will just mean both children will get in trouble as they are both breaking the law." no they really won't. The police aren't interested in two thirteen year olds having sex. Yes they're too young, no question about that, but the law is there to protect teens being groomed often by older men/women, not to prevent teenagers from having sex with each other. Your best bet for stopping that where possible is to speak to her dad and also the boy's parents. Reality is that if they're going to have sex they're going to have sex. However you can still have the talk about how inappropriate it is at thirteen, and by not providing a space for them to do so. But given they're both the same age neither is in a position to consent, and the boy is no more guilty than he is, although they both could do with being spoken to about the perils of under age sex/teenage pregnancy.

HerOtherHalf · 07/09/2017 10:23

My approach would be to just leave her to it for now. As PPs have said, at 13 nobody can force her to come back to yours unless she wants to. If you try pandering to her or getting into an emotional tug of war you run the risk that she will, as is not uncommon when parents separate acrimoniously, continue to play you and her dad against each other. You may not like the fact that she has chosen to stay with him but that is putting your feelings (and dare I say it your desire to win a battle with your ex with her as one of the pawns) before what is best for her. As much as you dislike your ex, it doesn't sound like you have any reason to believe she will be not be provided for or cared for with him.

Let her calm down and see if she makes contact with you of her own choice and then work from there to rebuild your relationship with her.

Notevilstepmother · 07/09/2017 10:26

It sounds to me like you current husband is calm and knows what is going on.

DH and DSDs stepdad have in the past managed to resolve situations when DSDs mum and DH weren't managing to, so I think that may be an idea worth trying. However there is the extra dynamic to be aware of in this situation that stepdad is the dad of stepsister who appears to have been stirring up trouble.

LaughingElliot · 07/09/2017 10:27

Well this is all very sad and difficult.

I do feel for your daughter with her step sister telling tales, that's a big obstacle to overcome. I wouldn't want to go back to that either.

I do hope you explore options for professional help for yourself and your daughter. Teens are tricky, that's for sure, and your daughter has the added complications of a stepfather and a preferred step sister in her home.

Sometimes I really wish parents would focus on the children they have before adding steps and halves to the mix 😫

contrary13 · 07/09/2017 11:36

I don't know that the OP can stop two teenagers from having sex, if they really decide that they want to, to be honest. I think that the best thing that this 13 year old girl's parents can do is try to make sure that she's not being pressurised into it by the boy (how old is he? Has the OP said? Because some senior schools have mixed year forms now... he could well be 15/16), that she has the self-respect and the self-confidence to know that "no" means NO, and perhaps do their utmost to ensure that yes, the school are aware of the situation. Perhaps the pastoral care team at the school could have a chat with the boy's parents? Oh, and definitely sort out some form of contraception which she, and not the boy, is in full control of (the Pill or mini-Pill, perhaps?). Essentially, though, whilst yes; the OP's daughter is very much still a child... when they're that age, they think they know everything, and they desperately want to be seen to be "grown up". I think most of us have been there, done that (albeit hopefully without the sex at 13, though!).

A girl in my year at school, many moons ago, fell for a "bad boy". Her parents - who were friends of the family, because I'd been in this girl's class since we started school, even though she and I didn't get along at all - were tearing their hair out over the situation. The school didn't want to know, the police didn't want to know, and their daughter wouldn't listen to them trying to reason with her. She gave birth three weeks before her 15th birthday. Fifteen years later, at 29, she became a grandmother - and that little girl is about to start senior school herself this term. My former school peer is, from what I can gather, extremely concerned that she might be a great-grandmother by the time she's 45, because she understands, from her own experience, that if a teenager wants to have sex... then they will have sex, irrespective of what their parents, or their teachers think/say about the subject. The only thing that parents can do, is... well... parent. Make sure their teenagers don't feel pressurised by their peers into doing something that they might not want to, that they have knowledge about contraception, that they are confident enough to say "no" if they need to... and that they know, without a shadow of a doubt, that they can confide in their parents at all times, about everything, if they choose and/or want to. They might not. Double edged sword.

And yes, I agree with previous posters that to a 13 year old being sent away from their home, especially if it's been their primary home since birth, is going to make them feel very rejected. Especially if there is a golden step-sister in the mix, I'm afraid.

OP, you and your ex need to work together on this one, rather than fighting, I'm afraid, to parent the daughter you created/brought into this world together. She needs you - even though from the sound of it she is very much acting out for the attention which she seems to crave (why is that, I wonder?). Perhaps if you didn't allow your husband's daughter to get away with manipulating situations so that your own is "the bad child"... she might have more confidence. In both herself - and you, as her mother.

But no court is going to force a 13 year old who feels rejected and abandoned by her primary carer, to spend any amount of contact time with them. You need to prepare yourself for that, I'm afraid.

Flowers
weatherbomb · 07/09/2017 12:05

OP, from your post I gather you are the resident parent. I would go and get her from school. The situation is being manipulated but difficult to know by whom. You need firm boundaries in place re social.media & access to internet etc - same applies for step daughter. It is a stressful time but do not let this drag on. Just go and get her. Let her dad go to court for a change in the order of he wants that. You will need to be prepared to fight. Please feel free to pm me.

cueless · 07/09/2017 12:11

By sending her away you have effectively broken the link with her. She might have been confused and needed your help. But all is not lost.
Working at rebuilding a relationship is the first step. Somebody suggested a letter, making sure she gets it in her hands. Sadly when I divorced I learnt that our children don't belong to us. I let them come and go, no matter how painful it can be (dad has lot of money and regularly splashes it on them). Nurturing the relationship is the only thing I can do.. Looking back on my teenage years, I do not care about the activities or clothes my parents bought me, but how they made me feel and how they supported me with my good and bad choices.
Check this for parenting resources: www.handinhandparenting.org/

user1499544885 · 07/09/2017 12:12

Step sister is definitely not preferred by me! Problem is the step sister doesn't give us the cheek and attitude that unfortunately my daughter has. We have a dinner put on the table and the four kids come when called my daughter won't! We cal her and call her, and it's when she's ready ( sounds trivial but just an example)

I have had a lot of remarks that I have abandoned her, I asked her if she would like to try it out living with dad and she said maybe but the buses to school were the problem. My ex husband encouraged me to let her try it, which I have. At the end of the day I am her parent not her friend and do I ignore sexual behaviour where I know the risks? I did speak to her regarding this and tell her of the risks. She promised not to contact the boy for a while to let things cool down . He's only 13 as well so I think his mum would have concerns too, but she continued changing his name on her contacts to a friend. My ex promised to help not cut me out of her life completely 😐 He's used this situation to alienate me, I told him if she happier there I will get the court order changed to him but I still want to see her!

OP posts:
cueless · 07/09/2017 14:05

When there is a contact request, Caffcass asked the children for their wishes. My understanding is that when it comes to enforcing it, if your DD does not obey the order, they will just say she is old enough to choose where she wants to be.
Your best bet, work on the relationship with her,

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