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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To wonder why MNetters all seem to have such terrible in-laws?

32 replies

jedediah · 08/05/2018 22:35

In real life, I don't know anybody who wouldn't trust their own parents or their dp's parents to look after their children. I don't know anyone who has ever gone "NC" with their parents or in-laws.

Yet on MN a seemingly disproportionate number of posters say that their parents or more often in laws are emotionally abusive and they would never let them be with their children unsupervised or sometimes at all.

Does anyone else find all these grandparent-bashing threads strange and rather sad?

OP posts:
overmydeadbody · 08/05/2018 22:39

It's like the relationships board, it's only when things are bad that people post for advice or to vent etc.

Nichelette · 08/05/2018 22:41

Agree with over. Mine are lovely so wouldn't be worth posting about!

bassackwards · 08/05/2018 22:41

Well, people who have friendly and uneventful relationships with their ILs don't start threads seeking support.

hubbibubbub · 08/05/2018 22:41

My
In laws are divorced and both sets remarried wonderful people

NC with my mother (serious personality disorder) and LC with my dad (enabling and passively emotionally abusive)

So of 4 sets of grandparents 2 are fantastic and 2 are the other side

Guessing many people are like us esp with so many more divorced parents and unwelcoming step in laws etc

drquin · 08/05/2018 22:42

Or does the disproportionate view stem from the fact that those with nice / normal / average relationships with parents or in-laws are unlikely to need to take the time and effort to post an "AIBU to have had a lovely lunch / holiday / chat with my mum" thread?

Thus you hear an apparent disproportionate amount of folk talking about the negative relationships?

Fruitcorner123 · 08/05/2018 22:42

I bet there are thousands of posters who have good relationships but they aren't gonna make a thread about it. I know what you mean though.

Kintan · 08/05/2018 22:44

I don’t think it’s disproportionate as such, it’s just a higher proportion of people with horrible in-laws post about them. My in-laws are all lovely so I’ve never needed to post about them to ask advice - and I’m sure it’s the same with the majority of users.

Singlenotsingle · 08/05/2018 22:44

I am a wonderful mil and get on very well with my Dil - I see her 2/3 times a week Halo

PaintedHorizons · 08/05/2018 22:46

Agree with overmydeadbody

Also the prevailing attitude is "my family, my rules" - no room for anyone else. The emphasis on individualism that is common now means that people are very intolerant of other ways of doing things.

user1471517900 · 08/05/2018 22:46

Singlenotsingle - sounds controlling. You should immediately go NC and don't tell her why

AornisHades · 08/05/2018 22:48

Why would you know though? I don't discuss my NC relative. It's not something I give headspace on a day to day basis.

LuluJakey1 · 08/05/2018 22:49

Mine are lovely. They have just moved up (with GMIL) from West Yorkshire to a house about 10 mins walk from us. DS is over the moon. So is DH. I was a bit hmmm but have rolled with it and got used to the idea. I don't have any family of my own apart from a cousin and my PIL and SIL have been wonderful. When my mam died the only oerson I could bear to go through her stuff with me when I had to sort her house out was my MIL.

Prestonsflowers · 08/05/2018 22:50

Yes I do think it’s very strange and sad.
I think some of them are complete bollocks, but others are just awful.
I was thinking the same thing tonight.
I know one woman in RL who is unable to see her granddaughter but she is the only one. The difficulties seem to be with her DIL, my friend is a lovely woman so I struggle to understand what she has done.
I can understand it in a way because I’m very low contact with my mother. Not because of any labels but because she is a cow and has treated me like shit at times.
I love my DIL and she is a great mother and wife, I do my best not to interfere and I always ask if I’m not sure how she likes stuff to be done.

MarklahMarklah · 08/05/2018 22:51

As has been said above, I think people post when there's a problem. I suppose it'd be uninteresting/unhelpful if I were to post "I really like my inlaws and have always got on well with them."
I don't need any advice and I don't want to complain! Smile

Every so often there are threads praising MILs/FILs/DILs which make some pleasant reading.

littlegecko · 08/05/2018 22:52

Mine are absolutely amazing, I couldn't ask for better. I never post about them as I don't need advice or a sounding board.

My ex in-laws were terrible - the toxic types that I read about on here. If I had been on Mumsnet when they were in my life I would have posted numerous stories about my general despair.

BikeRunSki · 08/05/2018 22:54

Mine are fine. I don’t post about them, because there is nothing to say!

SadieHH · 08/05/2018 22:54

Mine are fabulous although I wish I'd been on MN 20 years ago when we first met because I'd have made good use of AIBU Grin. It took a fairly hefty row for us to get to this stage but that was years ago now and since then they've been amazing.

Graphista · 08/05/2018 22:56

As pps have said, those not having problems don't post needing advice (and that's true of any potential life problem - there's also a high number of cheats and abuse if you don't take that into account).

In addition - people don't generally advertise if they're lc/Nc with people, they just either don't mention them at all - which you probably wouldn't notice, or they feign a better relationship than they do have.

I grew up in an abusive home and my dd was NEVER left alone with either of my parents. But nobody knew this apart from dd. I simply didn't mention it and honestly rarely went out, timing any nights out with sleepovers dd went on or paid for babysitters.

There's a lot of undeserved shame and embarrassment held by those of us that are the children or children-in-law of people like this.

Plus we're very well aware that people from healthy happy families rarely understand and honestly we don't need to hear "oh but it's your mum/dad/sibling how can you never speak to them again" "but it's faaaamily" "but they'd never hurt their gc surely" (why people think this when they've hurt DC I don't know) "surely what they did can't have been that bad" Hmm yea ok, mum battered at least twice a week, home and belongings broken, constant vile criticism of everyone, leching and sexual abuse - righto not that bad then. Totally safe environment to leave my child in - not!

I for one am glad of the understanding and support of the issues here on mn.

Also in real life (I must have one of those faces) I've actually had quite a few people confide abuse, Nc, not trusting their parents to mind the children until they're older at least due to medical issues or because the grandparents completely ignore widely accepted safety advice eg use of car seats. But they don't tell everyone.

MillicentF · 08/05/2018 22:56

Hmm. I think a lot of people might have awful dils....

Slanetylor · 08/05/2018 22:57

iRL I pretend my in laws are fab because I’m embarrassed and sad to tell any tiny detail of the truth. No one knows that they haven’t visited in 3 years because they don’t like our new house, and don’t like paying for meals in restaurants.

Slanetylor · 08/05/2018 22:59

Exactly as Graphista says.

And also as MillicentF says, people will always blame the DIL.

It’s better to pretend IRL

hammeringinmyhead · 08/05/2018 23:03

Unfortunately some parents of "children" now in their 20s and above will never accept that their offspring no longer have to do as they say. Neither do they have to raise their grandchildren in the way the GPs raised them. Doing something differently to your parents isn't a criticism but is often taken as one.

PatisserieDeBayeux · 08/05/2018 23:04

I think that in recent years people have become less tolerant of others and are losing the ability to see issues from any other standpoint than their own.

doleritedinosaur · 08/05/2018 23:04

Mine are awful, to an outsider it looks fine as my DH takes our boys up there once a fortnight but I no longer have anything to do with them.

Very few people know that though.

I’m NC with my mother & have been for 17 years but a lot of people assume she’s dead. It’s easier than saying alcoholic narcissist.

Graphista · 08/05/2018 23:13

Yes I have 2 friends that are completely Nc with their mothers and others assume the mothers are deceased. I don't correct them it's not my place.

One abandoned their family for a toy boy - as in literally walked out without a word, didn't bother seeing the DC or paying any maintenance. Then when toy boy tired of her as she aged and she was lonely she THOUGHT she could just step right back in and be the doting granny!

The other is a narcissistic abusive addict.

Both friends have been criticised for being "unwelcoming" "uncaring" in the past - by people who barely bloody knew them! So I don't blame them for letting people think what they will.