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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Another Bridezilla one....

163 replies

Reallyareyoukiddingme · 19/01/2024 18:42

I'm pretty sure IANBU but I needed advice on how to handle this situation!

I've been friends with a woman for around 10 years - let's call her Michaela. She and I worked together but bonded fairly quickly and we have stayed close despite me moving jobs. She was my bridesmaid when I got married a few years ago and we see each other probably every six months or so (I have to organise these).

Her relationship started around the same time as mine but for various reasons she was never expecting her OH to propose to her. He subsequently has and she is obviously very excited about this, and has asked me to be her bridesmaid. But her wedding plans are utterly out of control.

Her OH is from a religious background so she's having a big religious wedding up north, plus the religious ceremony (non legally binding). She's also having a legal wedding party in her home town - AND is planning a (non legal, non religious, just fun) destination wedding in a fairly expensive country in Europe. All of this is....fine.... though I am slightly stressed as to how I'll afford this both money wise and holiday allowance wise, but I'm very happy to attend all parts of it.

The problem came when she started discussing a hen do - again abroad, in a different European capital city. I was caught slightly on the hop when she first mentioned it and went along with the very vague initial planning stages, but I realised fairly quickly it was going to be a) my idea of hell (very late nights clubbing etc) and b) totally unaffordable in the context of all the other money I'm spending. So I messaged her to say how I was really sorry, but realised money was more of an issue than expected, and while I was delighted to be attending all parts of the wedding itself I just couldn't make the hen do work. I would have called her to chat through this but she hates phone calls and refuses to answer them, so a message was my only option.

She has since totally ignored me. I left it a week or so then messaged again, asking how wedding plans were going etc, and if I could help with anything. She has ignored that too.
BUT weirdly has added me to the bridesmaid WhatsApp group. There's lots of chat on there about plans to meet up and chat about the hen do, talk about the various wedding logistics etc - but no one is addressing me directly and she's still ignoring me.

WIBU to message her and say I was voluntarily stepping down from my BM duties? I really don't want to even go to the wedding at this point, and I'm so disappointed by her behaviour - I just can't imagine how she's justifying it to herself. But I am loathe to throw away so many years of friendship over something pretty petty in the grand scheme of things.

OP posts:
Coyoacan · 21/01/2024 12:07

@Minglingpringle

Fair enough

Reallyareyoukiddingme · 22/01/2024 08:05

Unsurprisingly - no reply. 🤷‍♀️

OP posts:
Codlingmoths · 22/01/2024 08:09

WhatsApp group it is!
Hi all, I will leave the group now as it doesn’t make sense to go to 3 weddings for a bride who isn’t speaking to me. My finances are relieved at least if not my feelings! all the best.

TerfTalking · 22/01/2024 08:11

I'd drop out of the Whatsapp and ghost her now. You are not important to her.

BunniesRUs · 22/01/2024 08:17

Will you miss her friendship?? That matters I guess for your plan of action.

EvilElsa · 22/01/2024 08:18

At this stage I'd leave the WhatsApp group and assume I wasn't a bridesmaid anymore (I wouldn't be one now anyway after all this). I wouldn't make further contact. You've saved yourself lots of money at least!!

zoom1982 · 22/01/2024 08:37

She's no loss OP,you've done what you can so walk away with a clear conscience. Just wait until the remaining bridesmaids find out the cost of this extravaganza! She'll be lucky to end up with one nevermind nine.

MzHz · 22/01/2024 09:04

@Reallyareyoukiddingme honestly, you’ve done what you can and she’s still a dick.

send the message to the WhatsApp group and leave her to it.

PumpkinsAndCoconuts · 22/01/2024 09:05

SisterMichaelsHabit · 19/01/2024 19:22

Three wedding celebrations is ridiculous. Two is enough for anyone (assuming long travel between bride and groom's family; this worked well for an English friend who was marrying a woman from China). Your friend's gone massively overboard and it sounds like she's got an "all or nothing" mentality that means she can't cope with you having reasonable boundaries like saying no to her out of control spending of other people's money.

Edited

two is fairly standard where I´m at. The registry (which is usually followed by something smaller with immediate families, witnesses etc.) and then the church (temple, non-religious ceremony...) wedding followed with a party.

If you have family abroad there will be a 3rd. That´s how I´ve been to a registry wedding in Switzerland, church wedding of the same couple in France but not to the 3rd (!) wedding in China...

But that´s not the point. I would talk to the "friend" IRL and then - depending on the general feel of that talk etc. - tell her that I´d be stepping down.

Coyoacan · 22/01/2024 13:06

I'm so sorry, OP. But life has taught me that when I lose one friend through no fault of my own, they are soon replaced by valuable new friends

pinkyredrose · 22/01/2024 13:17

A true friend wouldn't treat you like that. Who the fuck has 3 weddings and a hen do abroad!? It must be costing people a fortune to attend.

I'd definitely not go to any of the wedding, not anymore.

pinkyredrose · 22/01/2024 13:19

Op if you never contacted her to arrange meet ups would she contact you?

twoshedsjackson · 22/01/2024 13:29

I wonder how genuinely happy the other bridesmaids are, if the expenses etc are so great?
Do you have any other way of contacting them? They are probably being assured that you are perfectly happy with arrangements, possibly beginning to get cold feet, but don't want to be the first one to "break ranks".
I think the lack of communication is telling; heaven forbid that you would be comparing notes!

LifeExperience · 22/01/2024 13:40

"...we see each other probably every six months or so (I have to organise these)."

It doesn't sound like she's ever been much of a friend.

gardenfoundry · 22/01/2024 13:57

Lol, of course she's not replied to your message. Do you know any of the other bridesmaids? Could you message one and ask if she's heard anything?

CatamaranViper · 22/01/2024 14:00

Ah OP that's shit.

I'd probably send one more message in a week or so and just say something like
"Hi, I haven't heard back from you since X so it's obvious you're not talking to me. I really don't want to lose this friendship but I can't be a bridesmaid for you if you can't talk to me. If I don't hear from you, I'll take that as my cue and leave the bridesmaids WhatsApp group and step back."

pyjamaphile · 22/01/2024 14:27

Even if you decided to go, I bet you would never hear from her again after the wedding(s).

So absolutely no point spending all that money and time.

Mirabai · 22/01/2024 14:31

My advice was going to be as she’s ignoring you - don’t contact her. But hey ho you did - she’s still ignoring you.

Disconnect from the WhatsApp group, decline the wedding invites.

Problem solved.

Mirabai · 22/01/2024 14:31

LifeExperience · 22/01/2024 13:40

"...we see each other probably every six months or so (I have to organise these)."

It doesn't sound like she's ever been much of a friend.

Quite.

Reallyareyoukiddingme · 26/01/2024 14:13

UPDATE:
A week after I sent the last message, there was still no reply so I left the BM Whatsapp group this morning. (not flounced, one of those silent exits so only the admin - her - would have been notified).
This has obviously got her attention and I have finally had a reply. I'm too annoyed to think how to respond to it at the moment so any advice very welcome.

"ugh I'm not cross just really hurt and disappointed and didn't know how to deal with it so just buried my head in the sand and dealt with it terribly and didn't read your next messages - I'm sorry for that and for making you feel like I didn't want you to be my bridesmaid, of course I do, you're my brother and I love you'.

She's ignored me for two months!! A period which included my 40th birthday. She's not called me now to properly sort this out, just sent that message which I think is still incredibly self indulgent. I honestly don't know what to reply.

OP posts:
Anjea · 26/01/2024 14:17

You're her brother?

Caliope27 · 26/01/2024 14:19

Having been in a similar situation a few months ago with someone I thought was a good friend - my message was 'Too little, too late' and blocked everywhere.

Reallyareyoukiddingme · 26/01/2024 14:24

@Anjea no, I think she's implying closeness, I'm not literally related to her! It's a bit of an odd phrasing to be fair.

OP posts:
CatamaranViper · 26/01/2024 14:27

So she didn't acknowledge your 40th birthday? Would she normally acknowledge birthdays?

If she wants you to be a bridesmaid she needs to do a hell of a lot more work.

CatamaranViper · 26/01/2024 14:28

Are you female OP? I've assumed so based on the fact that you've said bridesmaid and most posters on here are female.
Why would she describe you as a brother?