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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To ask for help re missing clothes drama?!

303 replies

joggerdrama · 27/01/2022 16:27

24 y/o dd is autistic, she is high functioning but has a few sensory issues and struggles with mental health. She is fairly picky about clothes she’s wears and goes through periods of having a “comfort outfit” when her mental health is low. Recently her comfort item has been a pair of puma joggers.

Last night she did some washing and put said joggers in. I actually saw her taking them off and putting them into the washing machine so whether or not they were hers they’re the ones she’s been wearing. I came home from work today to her absolutely distraught because she went to take her clothes off the clothes horse and her joggers were missing, ds’ gf had hung some of her washing, and she is now wearing the same pair of joggers. I talked to gf and she says they’re hers, both dd and ds’ gf can show me proof of them buying the exact same joggers in the same size.

Dd wants me to make gf give them to her but I’m not willing to do that without any proof they aren’t hers. Gf emptied out the wardrobe and drawers to show me and dd that whilst she does have 2 pairs, they’re 2 different sizes so the joggers she’s wearing are definitely hers.

Dd is breaking her heart over this, saying she can’t go out with her friends today without them and she’s gonna call in sick to work at the weekend as she can’t wear anything else. She’s even gone as far as saying she wishes gf would go back to her own house and when I said that this is her home now she said well she wishes she’d just drop dead then (which I spoke to her about dw). She’s now crying her eyes out in her room and saying she wishes she was dead.

To save all this hassle I thought I’d just buy dd a couple of new pairs but they’re £35 for just one pair!! And then almost £6 for next day delivery to guarantee they’re here before she goes to work. I just can’t afford that right now and pay day isn’t for another 10 days! Dd also can’t afford to replace the joggers and she doesn’t get paid til the 15th.

I don’t know what I can do to fix this. I can’t demand gf hand over the joggers because they might belong to dd can I? But due to dds autism she probably isn’t going to move on from this for a while.

Just want to add after all that before anyone says anything due to how “dramatic” she’s being, I say dd is high functioning as that’s how she’s been labelled but I’ve suspected for a while she isn’t as functioning as she appears to be but has just adapted due to no-one suspecting autism until she was 13/14 and not getting an official asd diagnosis until she was 18.

OP posts:
sanbeiji · 27/01/2022 21:19

@joggerdrama

What, you think the majority of uni students live with their parents..???

No ofc not??? But her whole uni got kicked out of their accommodation due to covid and haven’t been allowed to return yet, hence why she’s living at home. Hmm

Wow is that really possible? Unis can't kick people out - e.g. for international students they have to stay or lose their visa. People can 'choose' to go home but if paid for they can't kick people out. What sort of unis is this... how is this legal?

Fair enough then although as you said she could have gone to her mum's. Why does she hate her that much...

joggerdrama · 27/01/2022 21:19

EBay was all mens, have never used vinted before but will check it out.

OP posts:
Ragwort · 27/01/2022 21:20

The GF might 'prefer to live with your DS' but it is your home, do you want the GF living with you? Maybe your DD isn't that happy that the GF has moved in? And if you are financially struggling in that a pair of joggers is too much then maybe you need to increase the rent they pay? If the GF is a student presumably she gets a maintenance loan ? My Uni student DS pays £135 a week for a room in a shared house (meals, laundry etc on top). I think all the youngsters are taking advantage of your kindness.

Viviennemary · 27/01/2022 21:20

Sounds likd the gf has your dds joggers. Why is she even living in your house in any case.

Ragwort · 27/01/2022 21:21

Which Uni 'kicked students out of their accommodation'? I just find that very hard to believe... maybe it's the story they told you ....

joggerdrama · 27/01/2022 21:22

Wow is that really possible?

Apparently so, I’ve seen gfs letters telling her she had to leave accommodation by a certain date in March 2020 and again in January 2021 so I know for certain they had been asked to leave and she actually lost part of her student loan because of it, they may have since been allowed to return but ds and gf say they haven’t.

OP posts:
Bananarama21 · 27/01/2022 21:22

Sounds like the gf has taken them tbh which is unfair on your dd. I wouldn't personally have her living there if that's a case it's unfair on your dd. She has a family she can stay with. What happens if her and your ds split?

sweetbutapshyco · 27/01/2022 21:23

ask your son to look into his wardrobe. Things can get mixed up.

Bananarama21 · 27/01/2022 21:26

I suspect she was asked to leave because of rent arrears or the tenancy ended. She wouldn't have been kicked out for nothing.

joggerdrama · 27/01/2022 21:28

I suspect she was asked to leave because of rent arrears or the tenancy ended. She wouldn't have been kicked out for nothing.

The letters state due to covid, Id probably be questioning it myself if she didn’t have actual proof of it though.

OP posts:
RosiePosieDozy · 27/01/2022 21:31

Tbh I think your DS' GF needs to be giving the joggers to your DD. Whether they really belong to her or not, she is aware of DD's autism and the stress this is causing. If I was you, I would ask DS' GF if she can please give the joggers to DD and that you will buy her some new ones of her choice (within reason) when you have the funds. DS' GF can wear anything I assume and your DD can't. She should have some empathy if you explain the extent of the situation to her.

MichelleScarn · 27/01/2022 21:32

@joggerdrama do you like her? Does she do her share of house stuff, as in not hers and ds, but a fair proportion. I can't imagine it's a great atmosphere in the house now and that's not great at all for you!

longtompot · 27/01/2022 21:32

Does the gf remember when she last wore the joggers? It just seems odd your dd put hers in the wash and they were hung on the airer with the rest of her wash, but gfs wash is still wet and there are no joggers in that load (I presume)? I am wondering if maybe hers were actually left at uni, or even one of her flat mates has them, and she has forgotten about that.

joggerdrama · 27/01/2022 21:43

do you like her? Does she do her share of house stuff, as in not hers and ds, but a fair proportion. I can't imagine it's a great atmosphere in the house now and that's not great at all for you!

I do like her yeah, she’s a lovely girl. We actually spend a lot of time together. She definitely does her fair share and more, she’s always offering to help out whenever she can. Atmosphere is a little off with dd as she is very sad but it’s calmed down and i don’t think gf is aware of the extent of dds upset, she was in her room not even an hour ago helping with dds dog and they were fine with each other.

OP posts:
allmywhat · 27/01/2022 21:43

Was gf’s order on ASOS for the small pair or for the extra small pair?

Are you absolutely sure she didn’t just help herself to your daughter’s pair because they fit her better?

That would be a horrendous thing to do, so I hope it’s not the case. But maybe ask to see the receipt again.

mummykel16 · 27/01/2022 21:44

@Itsalmostanaccessory

You saw your daughter put them in the washing machine. Your daughter will know where she then hung them up. Ask the girlfriend where she got them from. If she took them from the place your daughter hung them up, then they are your daughters.

This is what happens in shared houses, which is basically what you have. Your daughter hung them up, the gf took the. They're your daughters. The gf needs to give them back. If hers are missing then they're missing and that's that.

That would be my take too
SD1978 · 27/01/2022 21:45

GF living in your house, should hand them over. If it's causing this level of distress I have no idea why she hasn't already.

Blossom64265 · 27/01/2022 21:48

This is ridiculous. You know your daughter was wearing the pants, washed them, and was drying them. They were essentially in her possession. The girlfriend needs to return them.

Your daughters space and trust in her home has been violated. This is huge for someone with ASD. This is much bigger than a pair of joggers.

With two people wearing similar sizes, I suggest they both start labeling their clothing going forward. A fabric marker is cheap, but doesn’t always show up. Adhesive clothing labels are another option, but there can be sensory issues. My own ASD child doesn’t have a problem with them and I don’t either, but some might.

Porcupineintherough · 27/01/2022 21:49

It's interesting how many people on this thread are determined to paint the gf in the worst possible light, regardless of how the OP portrays her. What's that all about then?

ButtonMoonLoon · 27/01/2022 21:50

Moving forwards can I suggest investing in laundry markers so that your dd can label her clothes. It might save confusion in the future especially if they wear the same size

SimonedeBeauvoirscat · 27/01/2022 21:52

I will ask again. When did GF last see her pair?

Motnight · 27/01/2022 21:52

@Porcupineintherough

It's interesting how many people on this thread are determined to paint the gf in the worst possible light, regardless of how the OP portrays her. What's that all about then?
I totally agree with @Porcupineintherough.

It's as though there has to be a villain in this scenario and it has to be the GF.

WiddlinDiddlin · 27/01/2022 21:55

I suspect the girlfriend has no real understanding AT ALL about how your DD feels.

You use the sort of language about DD that does lead to misunderstandings - picky, high functioning etc.

IM high functioning, I run my own businesses, support two adults and four dogs and more fish than I can count...

I am not 'picky' about my clothes - I wear the ones that do not make me wish to claw my own skin off, turn myself inside out and grate my own eyeballs.

That isn't simply being picky. I cannot function in a tshirt too small that rides up a bit or hasn't got enough give in it, i actually, at the age of 42... CRIED because my favourite shapeless thin tshirt got so thin it fell apart the other week. I didn't get out of bed that day. Nothing I owned felt 'right' or even possible to wear.

Im not saying you genuinely underestimate how much your daughters autism affects her, but if you use words like that around the girlfriend, as you have here, I can see why she wouldn't 'get' it at all.

Wearing the wrong thing... its as possible for me as it would be for you to lick your own elbow whilst covered in bees, and riding a unicycle.. on the moon. The brain just goes 'cannot'. End.

And yet my tax return suggests a turn over of 30K+ and other people seek me out for my advice, work, input etc.

Intelligence and being autistic are not mutually exclusive, in fact id say its possibly WORSE to be this way because im FULLY aware of how bloody weird I am, and how it limits me.

MichelleScarn · 27/01/2022 21:56

@Porcupineintherough

It's interesting how many people on this thread are determined to paint the gf in the worst possible light, regardless of how the OP portrays her. What's that all about then?
I know @Porcupineintherough demanding she must hand them over/have stolen them/have had a huge evil plan/is a terrible horrible person who just needs to do whatever other people want!
MichelleScarn · 27/01/2022 21:57

Oh and the level of what seems to be perverse delight in being nasty to the gf is absolutely 'not in the spirit' of MN.

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