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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To NOT want a relationship with my lovely sibling?

111 replies

ConfusedSister · 23/07/2021 19:48

This is a strange one, but I have no one in my personal life that understands my feelings around this and I just sound so ungrateful.

Basically a decade ago my estranged father died. I went to the funeral where I met my biological half brother for the first time. There were 2 brothers on my dads side with different women.

Brother number 1 was pleasent but didn't have much interest in a long term relationship and neither did I. So we had a couple of weeks of finding out information about eachother we never knew, exchanged numbers and had no further contact since. We both had our own lives and families/friends so left it there.

Brother number 2 I will call John. Since the funeral John has made a LOT of effort to maintain contact and form a sibling relationship.
He has no other siblings and other Brother number 1 basically told him directly he wanted no further contact or relationship.

I on the other hand was open to keeping contact as I didn't mind either way really. However John over the years has become a nuisance although lovely.

He sends birthdays and Christmas cards and presents. He insists on traveling across the country to see me and wants me to see him which I have obliged on occasion due to a sense of duty/obligation to him after all the effort he puts in.

He rings me very regularly and makes it clear he wants an active role in my life as a sibling.

Now here is where I don't know if I am being an unreasonable ungrateful cow or if my reaction is normal/reasonable.

I already have siblings that I grew up with from my mother's side. I don't particularly get on with them and don't put in a fraction of the amount of time I feel I have to do for John. Me and my siblings don't ring eachother constantly and see eachother at Christmas at my mums and maybe once during the summer. We are all happy with this level of contact.

If my siblings were to start calling me like John does I could say to them 'stop annoying me and no harm done. We have that sort of relationship as raised together.

John essentially is a stranger I have little in common with other than the fact we have the same dad. The relationship feels forced and unnatural to me.

John has a wife and children and he tries to force some kind of 'auntie' role from me. He will ring me and put the kids of the phone to speak to their 'auntie'. But it's awkward for both me and the kids as I have met them a handful of times over the years. He'll send me handmade gifts from the children which is sweet but essentially feels like a strangers child's gift I'm expected to put on my mantelpiece and feel sentimental about.

I find myself avoiding calls from John and dread seeing texts pop up from him. It feels almost like a burden.

I keep telling myself to be grateful I have someone who genuinely cares and WANTS to see me and cares about my wellbeing.

But if I'm honest, the relationship is just awkward and unnatural as we weren't raised together and have nothing in common. It's a forced relationship.

I don't know if I am making any sense or if anyone understands.

I'd appreciate advice. Even if it's a kick up the ass to say I am ungrateful and selfish to feel this way and to keep making me effort.

I'm on my phone so apologies for any typos.

OP posts:
SourAppleChew · 24/07/2021 01:21

@SpringCrocus

Oh so much of this smacks of the OP has to #bekind to this half brother, just because she's female. She doesn't want to! Why on earth should she be forced to have a relationship closer than she is comfortable with, if she doesn't want to?

@ConfusedSister do what you feel comfortable with. No more. You owe him nothing more than that.

What's it got to do with being female? Confused

The man haters seem to be out in force tonight. Probably need something new to be bitter about now lockdown is over.

SpringCrocus · 24/07/2021 01:51

@SourAppleChew
ODFOD

harverina · 24/07/2021 02:25

You’ve allowed this to go on for 10 years! He probably feels that you have built up a close relationship because this has been going on for 10 years! I feel desperately sad for him. Even if he is a bit intense / a bit of a pain in the ass, he is going to be absolutely devastated that all of a sudden you aren’t interested anymore, because you’ve essentially played along with things for 10 years.

The flip side is - if I was him I would want to know because I wouldn’t want to be wasting my energy on someone who feels such disdain for me and my children.

As a previous poster has said, you don’t owe him anything, and you aren’t obligated to spend time with him or speak with him. However, it would have been far better to deal with this all those years ago.

harverina · 24/07/2021 02:26

@AtomHeartMotherOfGod

If I'm being brutally honest, I'd be wondering if he wanted this relationship because further down the line he wants to ask for money/ childcare/ some other favour.

I don't know tons of blokes who thirst for social contact or intimacy like this. Maybe that's just the men I know though!

They’ve been in contact for a decade
Coachradley · 24/07/2021 03:37

Have you tried to get to know him properly one to one? How do your other siblings feel about him?

You should tell him not to call you so often because you don’t like it. For me, I think we all have an impact on people’s lives. If you’ve never given him a chance then how do you know you’re not missing out something special?

PurpleSapphire · 24/07/2021 04:10

I can see both sides op. I don't think you're a horrible person but it seems you both have a different idea of what family is. I would be the "John" in this scenario I think, I was brought up an only child living with my mum and stepdad and was incredibly lonely but I do have a half sister and a stepsister who grew up together with my dad and my stepmother. We've always known each other but not "known" each other, as I didn't spend much time with my dad. I've tried to reach out to them as adults and neither of them have replied to a message, they have no interest in knowing me, they have each other, in their eyes i'm just a daughter dad had before and nothing to do with their family. It hurt me very much that they wouldn't even give me a chance as i've never treated them badly, I used to send a small gift at Christmas etc when they were younger but stopped as they became adults because they never sent one back or even wrote me a card themselves...I wasn't being spiteful, I just didn't see the point anymore. I'm a stranger to them and always will be, no way am I ever going to beg someone to know me so i've accepted it.

Having said that, you can't force a relationship with anyone, family, potential friends, potential partners. You can't make yourself care about someone if you just, well, dont.

Missedopportunity · 24/07/2021 04:16

You have all these siblings and you don't have or want a relationship with any of them?

malificent7 · 24/07/2021 04:45

You are missing out aren't you? Maybe tell him to lighten up a bit and chill.

JacquelineCarlyle · 24/07/2021 05:37

Completely agree with @Sssloou and would be following that approach.

Weebleweeble · 24/07/2021 06:28

As the children get older will they be interested in a distant aunty? So that side should reduce over time.
What can you put up with? Meet up once a year. A birthday card and letter or email. Xmas email with a catch up on everyone?
Things change over time births, deaths etc His feelings might change too as DGCs come along. He will have a big family of his own.
Try to get it to your acceptable level of relationship.

FrankButchersDickieBow · 24/07/2021 07:46

A significant period of time had passed when my dad died. Think 20 years. And a son he had when he was 16, traced my mum through some online family tree site thing. We had no idea.

We were all very welcoming at first and had visits and stuff, but I felt totally disconnected.

Years later now and I don't bother tbh. There's only one of my siblings who keeps in touch with him.

There was no common ground whatsoever. He was older, from a different country, no shared past, memories etc.

It was all forced and uncomfortable and basically fizzled out.

Drivingmeupthewall · 24/07/2021 08:17

Oh, I feel sorry for John. Sad

Eviethyme · 24/07/2021 08:17

I wish I had a sibling pop up. As a single child I would love just 1 sibling I was close too

TeaDrinker98 · 24/07/2021 08:22

You can't help how you feel. I will say though, I have a lot of older siblings, and my father went on to have another child and it meant the absolute world to me to get to know my sibling (my father and I were estranged, and he also became estranged from my new sibling too).

She told me several times she didn't want me in her life and I respected it and back off, even when she would text me out of the blue I would respond, but keep it very brief. After years she came around and realised I'm not the bad guy (our father is), and now we're relatively close.

There must be a reason you feel this way, but please be kind to this man as he sounds like he feels the way I felt about my sister. I was so desperate to have her in my life.

TeaDrinker98 · 24/07/2021 08:28

@NannyAndJohn

He's not your sibling, he's creepy stranger.

Tell him you want no further contact and block his number.

@NannyAndJohn

I feel sorry for the people in your life if you genuinely feel this way, and you aren't just trolling.

Awful thing to say.

AuntieMarys · 24/07/2021 08:29

I think springcrocus hits the nail on the head.
Dh had a similar situation with a half sister who suddenly materialised....they had nothing in common apart from sharing a bastard of a father.

SixesAndEights · 24/07/2021 08:33

My father has other children, full siblings, 10-15 years older than me. They were in my life quite a bit as a child, one even lived with us. I was 13 when I found out that they weren't my full siblings, too.

I had a phone call from one of them when I was in my late teens telling me they were a unit I could not penetrate and to stop trying. I was devestated.

So, despite being different I feel for John. Particularly since you've gone along with this for 10 years!

Naaaaah · 24/07/2021 08:40

No one is man hating at all. There just absolutely are different expectations placed on women. So many women's t shirts have the 'be kind' slogan on them. Mens don't. We're expected to be accommodating and kind and thoughtful. All good traits of course but not when it's a man pushing your boundaries and bulldozing into your life.

Sssloou · 24/07/2021 08:53

However John over the years has become a nuisance although lovely.

His boundary tramping, overbearing nature and persistent / relentless behaviours are “off” socially - sibling or not.

He is a nuisance to you. That’s how you feel about him so it’s a fact - it’s your lived experience and reality.

I suspect that the “lovely” behaviors are calculated to get what he wants from you - which is manipulative and why you feel conflicted and confused.

Put in some clear overt boundaries - how he reacts will tell you all you need to know. If he says - yes of course I will wait for you to come back to me in your own time when there is a missed call - I am really sorry that my actions irritate you….ie he acknowledges and respects your boundary - all will be good and you can have a relationship on your terms - if he ignores, pushes, challenges, sulks then you need to bin him off totally as he is disrespectful of your time, energy and emotional needs - and not so lovely after all.

Drop the guilt and obligation - tap into how you feel and take some action on it - don’t let him dictate the relationship.

Crockof · 24/07/2021 08:58

@Drivingmeupthewall

Oh, I feel sorry for John. Sad
Why? He doesn't respect boundaries, demands more than the op wants to give, and all because they share half DNA? If he has abandonment issues it's not for the OP to sort out. There are loads of threads where people go NC on siblings they grew up with for far less.

It's not man hating, it's just posters expecting a woman to put her feelings below another. It is not right.

Porcupineintherough · 24/07/2021 08:59

Quite a lot of imagination projection there @Sssloou. There's no suggestion that the OP has ever set any boundaries for John to trample. Or done anything to discourage his attempts at a relationship in fact.

Souther · 24/07/2021 09:00

YABU.

If you feel this way you need to let him know. Put some boundaries in

WildfirePonie · 24/07/2021 09:07

YANBU.

I feel sorry for you OP.

I don't feel sorry for John.

The situation sounds suffocating.

So what if John needs to fill his empty void? Why should you facilitate?

John isn't miserabe. You are miserable. In this situation that he is forcing onto you.

Not your problem OP.

You do what is best for you.

mummypie17 · 24/07/2021 09:13

I think if you haven't grown up together and aren't used to that level of contact, it would feel intense. My brother (we grew up together) are in contact regularly and he dotes on my son. However, I probably wouldn't feel comfortable if it was a sibling that I found out and met later as an adult.

billy1966 · 24/07/2021 09:35

Completely agree with @Sssloou and others who are sympathetic to the OP.

How you feel OP is how you feel.
End of.

That level of contact with someone you have zero interest in, nothing in common with, sounds absolutely invasive and smothering.

He must sense your disinterest, but just motors on.

It sounds like a very high level of contact which must feel like you have no control over as he is so insistent.

I would find that massively intrusive which would make me very cross.

I don't like being imposed upon.

Just because you share a father doesn't mean he is entitled to shove himself into the middle of YOUR life.

I think you have been far too accommodating.

If it was a very occasional, couole of times a year, I think you would have been fine.

But this level of contact is ALL about him.

I would NOT be happy about it either.