Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Do not feel part of the family

7 replies

Dolly832 · 27/12/2019 17:19

For a long time now I've been aware that my family are complicated. my mum isn't very good with affection and emotion and she's had four daughters who have been raised without a hug. I think we all have our own issues due to this. some of us have a lack of confidence some of us cannot commit and some of us just don't socialise. I've got a lack of confidence. I'm getting much better the older I get and I'm determined to expose my children to a lot more than I ever was exposed to.

As kids we didn't get birthday parties or holidays. My mum to this Day still says kids don't need birthday parties there a waste of money. She never wanted to do anything fun really looking back. we were taught from a young age just sit and behave l,if we ever went to somebody's house we have warned not to mess around. I honestly think their strict approach is the reason I would never dance at a wedding now or get up and have a good time.

Since having my kids I've realised so many things. one of them is just realising that I went through things as a teenager and I should have had more help from my mum. I had an abortion when I was 18. I'd been working for two years at that point but my parents refused to speak to me when I got pregnant and I did it to please them. I don't think I've ever truly got over that. on the day of the procedure they didn't even ask me when I got home how it had gone or if I was OK, they just never mentioned it again. I continue to have a relationship with them and I do love them but I often feel sad and alone because of them. Now I'm a mum myself to two little people I feel worse than ever about how I feel about them.I want to bring my kids up differently but I'm having to try and do that in front of them when they clearly don't always approve.sometimes I think my mum wants me to feel like I'm not naturally that great at being a mum, she will say things like god don't have anymore more you won't cope with any more.I think she thinks these things because I actually consider my children's feelings and understand them if they're feeling a bit anxious etc so I do worry and talk about them. I think she sees things as a weakness. I also try and provide my kids with a little bit more experience. I don't necessarily mean money I just mean time.I take them to the woods I take them to park, I take my daughter swimming, I just try and let them have more. my mum never really thought about us having nice hair or nice outfits, not necessarily because of money just again she wasn't interested.I think this has affected me because I do make sure that my kids wardrobes are always fully stocked, I don't overspend but I make sure they've got lots of nice outfits.I always remembered my friends always having more than me and getting different things that I never seemed to get. most years mum didn't even get me a birthday cake, she just get a frozen gateau.

Lately I've just been feeling uncomfortable around them. I think it is really hard to go through motherhood without that warm supportive figure that a mum should be. even in the early days after having my kids they never offered to make as a hot meal or even if we need a loaf of bread from the shop. Once the babies were a week old the novelty wore off of coming around. They never invite us over now, they never offer yo have the kids, even if we go around,they don't particularly spend any time with the kids they just sit there. I can tell my daughter gets really bored around there and doesn't enjoy going anymore. my dad doesn't have a lot of patience and my mum digs at my little girl because she can be a little bit of a diva she's 4! they often say to me you want to get her squared up and I just feel like saying you don't see them most of the time how can you tell me how to parent them.

I honestly envy people who have a nice warm kind mum who they can just sit with have a cup of tea with,have a chat with and offload.I honestly don't know what it feels like to feel loved and supported by my parents. Does anyone else feel this way? I love them dearly but I feel so lonely in a family sense. Thank god I have my kids and partner

OP posts:
sayanythingelse · 27/12/2019 17:34

I'm sorry to hear of your experience OP. Your mum sounds so much like mine and I too have struggled with it as an adult, even more so now that I have my own DD who means everything to me. It's hard to understand how a parent can be so cold.
We live nearly 100 miles away from my parents and went to visit them recently for the second time since DD was born (she's 2) and my mum didn't make any effort with her, she even swerved out the way when DD ran towards her.

Its crap but is what it is and it doesn't mean you're going to be the same kind of parent. I think it's made me a better parent as I know how NOT to treat my DD. I'm very thankful that I have a nice MIL who treats me as a daughter and I think that's helped.

bridgetreilly · 27/12/2019 17:38

she will say things like god don't have anymore more you won't cope with any more

To me, this sounds like projection: she did not cope well with children, so she assumes that you won't either.

DariaMorgendorffer · 27/12/2019 17:46

Totally get you op, and my family has a very similar dynamic. It has affected me deeply, i see now, mostly with relationships and trust/intimacy (am mid-30s and still single). I do have an amazing dd who is 16 and I thank god for her!! Also trying to raise her in a completely different way. Sending solidarity Thanks

checkingforballoons · 27/12/2019 17:50

Won’t type out my entire childhood but no, you’re not alone!

ManonBlackbeak · 27/12/2019 17:57

I get it too OP. My DM was quite simply not equipped to deal with children because she’d had such a difficult childhood herself, and was as a consequence very self absorbed and ruled by her moods which changed like the wind.

I can honestly say she has never once asked me how I am or how my day was and I’m 37! She doesn’t understand feelings and emotions and brushes them aside. She is quite simply only really interested in herself and her own needs.

LifeIsAPotato · 27/12/2019 18:05

I've been feeling like I'm not part of my family too, in my case it's slightly different my mum isn't very supportive but pretends to be, and also changes her views to suit her audience. I've given up wishing I had a real supportive family and have just decided to distance myself as much as possible. Not helpful to you but you are not the only one that wishes they had a better mother!

Dolly832 · 27/12/2019 23:05

Wow I wasn't expecting several replies so thank you! It's absolutely rubbish isn't it? I just wonder what it would be like to have a mum who supports you and wants to be involved. I understand there are many reasons people don't enjoy children or don't wish to baby sit ...but to not want to invest in your family and be close I can't understand! Pretty much everyone else around me has their mum's at their baby scans, baby showers, even the birth. Most people around me seem to have mums that buy toys etc for the grandkids to play with. My parents have a couple of old baby toys in the wardrobe. Never crosses their minds to pick up a puzzle or a doll etc so my 4 year old has something to do.

I think it's starting to get to me now as I'm pulling away from them. I've not been around over christmas it's like there's a block and I just can't force myself to do it anymore. I used to go around Christmas day and boxing Day. The last two times we've been around I just thought how miserable they both were. I looked at how bored my DD was too. Just gets me down I guess. Not like we can go find another family is it Sad

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread