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Parents of adult children

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Adult Dd hates me and right now I don’t like her very much either. Very long, sorry.

220 replies

DDstress · 25/08/2023 17:18

She’s 22yo, just finished uni. Lives at home, lived at home all through uni. Still married to her dad. No other kids.

I really don’t know where it went wrong. We seemed to get on fine, days out, doing stuff, etc till she was about 16yo. Then she got more distant but thought well this happens, she’s out with friends, etc, it’s normal.

she’s always been well behaved and worked hard, done well at school, etc with no pressure from us.

I offered to pay for her to live in halls at uni but she declined, we let her do what she liked and never interfered with her life or gave her any house rules.

If I’m honest she’s been spoilt. Certainly financially. If she wants something she pretty much gets it. 2k laptop for uni (said she needed a high spec), expensive desktop, upgrading stuff on her desktop computer, driving lessons, 6k car. Pay all her insurance, tax, car bills. She has a part time job so didn’t need an allowance while at uni as she got wages plus her student loan.

we paid for her to go on a course to Italy which cost us 3k this summer, it was Paris with a friend the year before that. She said to me yesterday that she wants a new laptop for Xmas.

she had a boyfriend while at uni and they split up at Xmas. Her choice. From what I saw she was vile to him, but she said he was horrible to her beh8nd closed doors. She dumped him, I sympathised. Since then she seems in a foul mood constantly

If anything goes wrong she has a meltdown, rages, shouts at me and rages (dh keeps out the way).

she was dog sitting a few weeks ago and rang me at work saying she needed £80 now as she was booking her speed awareness course and had no money as she’d spent it all on food as was living at this house she was dog sitting at. At no point did she clearly say to me she needed money for food. I transferred the £80, told her I couldn’t buy food for two households but there was plenty of stuff here (5 miles away) she could come and get. She slammed the phone down on me. A few weeks before this I told her she needed to sign on for universal credit but she has refused.

so she went to Italy for three weeks. Came back and said she has sorted out an au pair job and as soon as she can is leaving. She’s having a nightmare sorting out the visa, I have been googling and trying to help and she had a meltdown today.

Said she is doing it “all on my own”. I pointed out I’ve been trying to help and have actually found out how to book the visa appt today and while she was on the phone to me with her encouragement booked the appointment. She is now raging at me for booking at . She then said she hasn’t booked the language course which she needs to do to get a certificate for her visa. I’d given her £500 towards an £800 course a few days ago and yesterday she told me she’d booked it. Turns out that was a lie. She doesn’t want that language school as she’s heard the govt have clocked that it gives out dodgy visa letter (she should be at the school for the whole year but £800 is about 4 weeks of lessons but they will do you a letter saying it’s a year). So she needs to pay 3k for a better language school.

I said I’m not paying 3k for a language school for her. She’s been shouting at me. Saying how much she hates me, that she’s leaving the country because she wants to get away from me. That I’m emotionally abusive. That I was emotionally abusive at Xmas. I asked her to give me one example and she can’t remember. She says we’re a dysfunctional fucked up family and she can’t wait to leave and she’s never coming back. I said fine, if that’s the way you feel then go. She’s screaming that she’s trying but can’t afford to.

She said her whole childhood has been emotionally abusive, that she’s always been unhappy. That I have never supported her. I pointed out all the stuff we’ve done, from paying for tutors, paying for counsellors, helping her write appeal letters when she was nearly kicked out of uni for failing a year, all the financial help. Or she can say is that I give her money so I can throw it back in her face. But I don’t throw it in her face, but I will defend myself trying to give examples of when I think we have supported her.

she was angry because I made a cake this afternoon as she wanted to make one, but she’d just got in after driving a 4 mile round trip to the embassy and not getting seen. So I thought I’d do something nice and that she wanted actual cake, not to be making the cake herself. She’d mentioned about cake yesterday so I was trying to do something nice for her.

my friends say she bullies me. She seems as nice as pie when she wants something, and angry and nasty when she doesn’t get her own way.

she works at the gym I go to and she told staff there that I’d kicked her out after Xmas (she went to live with friends for a few months ) and that her dad had hit her. Which is all lies. I confronted her about that for the first time today and asked her why she lied because it’s embarrassing as I know her colleagues and they asked me about it. She was backtracking and said that her dad did hit her (he smacked her when she was about 6yo and I said no more and he hasn’t). She reckons when she told work that she was referring to that. Which is bullshit. I told her I hadn’t kicked her out and she denied telling work that which I think is also bullshit.

She seems to like being the victim. There’s been minor examples of this with friends, etc where I think she’s said something about them which isn’t true. That they’ve done xyz to her. Im actually beginning to wonder if she has s9me sort of personality disorder. The friends she stayed with im sure she told them I kicked her out. She gets on very well with her (now ex) lecturers at uni and im sure she’s told them this. Her graduation is next week and she hasn’t invited us to it. She wants everyone to feel sorry for her and run round after her.

I to,d her im sad she feels this way but if it’s how she feels then she should go and pointed out I prefer it when she’s not here. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.

she’s stormed off now, im sure to go and tell someone how abusive I am to her and probably try and find somewhere else to move to. She has 24k in a bank account which I’d saved for her as a child for a house deposit. I told her if she needs money for expensive Italian language courses she will have to start using her money. Am I right?

OP posts:
Pollyputhekettleon · 25/08/2023 19:39

7eleven · 25/08/2023 19:36

To rescue the pp from tiring her eyes with rolling, emotional needs are a basic in accepted wisdom about development.

https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html

No one is denying that people have emotional needs. What annoys people is the ideology that all bad behaviour in children, or in this case overgrown children, must be caused by parents not meeting their child's emotional needs. That's a poisonous lie.

Namechange666 · 25/08/2023 19:40

Lindy2 · 25/08/2023 18:05

My DD15 has ADHD and ASD. Your daughter is displaying a lot of neuro diverse traits. Any demand that feels overwhelming (this can be even a very small demand) causes a drama.

My DD is also always the victim and seems to crave attention by telling dramatic stories. We are also terrible parents according to her. I hate to think what she actually says about us.

It is extremely difficult. I have no answers.

At 22 though I'd cut back on funding her. You need to break that habit.

How does ADHD create a load of drama or be an ND trait? Please be aware everyone is different. I don't lie or create drama or start things to get my own way. I never did as a child either. Fed up of people feeding negative reinforcement for being ND like it's the norm. Someone's personality is separate to being ND. Yes we can have mood swings and be temperamental. But to be demanding and selfish sounds more like from her upbringing.

DDstress · 25/08/2023 19:41

@EmmaEmerald this happened after they’d split up. She was hysterical as she actually came across his car in a ditch on her way to town as the police were inspecting it. She rang me in a panic begging for help as she was worried he’d staggered off injured across the fields. They never got back together.

OP posts:
MarmiteMakesMeHappy · 25/08/2023 19:43

It's vile behaviour OP - especially in black and white and particularly to an outsider with well behaved DC - but I can relate to some of this.

My DD is professionally angry. She is a bit younger - 18 - but has been claiming that we are all dysfunctional / emotionally abusive / have destroyed her childhood and her mental health - since she was about 14. She has told friends that DH has assaulted her (he once held her pretty firmly by the shoulders when she was trying to kick and punch him), she has had massive fallouts and friendship group dramas, she can go from fine to rage in a second at the slightest comment, and the rage escalates to kicking doors, screaming and squaring up to you and she has form for lying. She said HIDEOUS things to her dad and I - hideous. The tiniest comment can trigger the most disproportional rage.

It's heartbreaking and I have looked long and hard at how she was raised and can see definite examples that COULD be interpreted as dysfunctional (me and DH had a couple of really bad years fighting a lot), that COULD be called abusive (DH does not mince his words so has told her she is selfish/spoilt/brings things on herself) etc, but nothing to warrant the behaviour. Her DS (raised in the same house) is not like her at all.

She is almost as angry with herself as she is with us. Lots of self harm, misery poetry and self-diagnoses - from bpd to adht. The flip side is she can be kind, funny, loving and deeply and truthfully sorry and remorseful. I make no excuses for her vileness and aggression and have told her that no matter what is happening or what she is feeling she has to take some responsibility for her rage. BUT... and it's a big BUT.... having - over the past two years spoken to her school and GP about her, the consensus is that she certainly shows signs of being ND. Her inability to regulate her emotions and the level of pain that she feels from the smallest, jokiest, insult or incident - are big indicators. She filled in a form for the mental health team at our surgery last week that very much points to ADHT so we are looking into it.

I'm not an idiot. Some people are just spoiled brats and your DD has certainly had an easy touch with you, but it's worth considering.

Solidarity to you. It's very fucking hard.

7eleven · 25/08/2023 19:44

Pollyputhekettleon · 25/08/2023 19:39

No one is denying that people have emotional needs. What annoys people is the ideology that all bad behaviour in children, or in this case overgrown children, must be caused by parents not meeting their child's emotional needs. That's a poisonous lie.

Of course, not in all cases at all. In some cases though, it is.

Namddf · 25/08/2023 19:45

ValBiro · 25/08/2023 17:40

ND?! Seriously? Based on... What? So offensive!

You've given her an absolute ton of money to get by, OP. She's played you!

I agree that’s so offensive to people who actually are neurodivergent. She doesn’t sound remotely ND to me, just spoilt and manipulative.

Bad, selfish behaviour isn’t really a symptom you know 🙄

Pollyputhekettleon · 25/08/2023 19:46

DDstress · 25/08/2023 19:39

She said it had helped. Something did actually happen to her in her first year at uni with someone on her course which I don’t feel comfortable divulging even though I’ve name changed. So the counselling was for this, she says the gp said she had ptsd following the event. The GP did talk to her about medication but she refused.

OP, I mean this kindly, but we're 6 pages in and now you're telling us this? She has a history of generalized anxiety disorder, PTSD and some kind of trauma at university. She's had a boyfriend who was clearly a thug.

You have spoiled her rotten and that's partly why she's behaving the way she is. But she's also very messed up. Partly that may be because she's inherited some ADHD traits from you and some ASD traits from your husband. She's never been diagnosed or given any help with the consequences of those and as someone said since uni she's been out in an unstructured world where things can go awry for someone like that. Then she grew up in an environment where you know yourself you're not the best at emotional stuff and your husband is absolutely useless.

Yes counselling has probably exaggerated your role in causing this, counsellors have a tendency to do that. But there's more to this than over indulgent parenting. You don't get to just say you prefer to give practical help. Your husband doesn't get to just be a useless git. You need to help her emotionally and I think you both need to sort yourselves out first if you're going to be able to do that.

EmmaEmerald · 25/08/2023 19:46

DDstress · 25/08/2023 19:41

@EmmaEmerald this happened after they’d split up. She was hysterical as she actually came across his car in a ditch on her way to town as the police were inspecting it. She rang me in a panic begging for help as she was worried he’d staggered off injured across the fields. They never got back together.

Well, I'm glad they never got back together.

Pollyputhekettleon · 25/08/2023 19:47

7eleven · 25/08/2023 19:44

Of course, not in all cases at all. In some cases though, it is.

I know. I'm simply explaining why people get annoyed at those who assume bad behaviour is the result of not meeting emotional needs, where there's no evidence of it.

SoSad44 · 25/08/2023 19:48

I am afraid I think the 8k for the language school is a lie. The visa requirement is enrollment in a language school not 20 hours per week. Most au-pairs don’t have 20 hours per week spare and a 20 hour pw course is very unusual and intense. Most au-pairs do 2-4 hours per week.

dont help her with the prep for the consulate. She is an adult with a degree, she can figure it out herself. I am sure she is able to tick a check list. Stop babying her and I think it’s time she moved out.

DDstress · 25/08/2023 19:49

I do really feel I have tried to be there emotionally for her as much as I can. So as a small child loads of cuddles, days put, bed time stories every night, telling her how much I loved her.

as she got older she fell out with her group of friends in year 9 and spent the next three years with no friends at school which was hard. I listened and reassured her. She made friends online with a group of girls her age playing MindCraft and I facilitated her meeting up with them a few times a year at various MineCon festivals and ComicCons.

she moved school for sixth form at her request and was very popular at sixth form with lots of friends. So things looked up then. She has friends now.

OP posts:
Twillow · 25/08/2023 19:49

YukoandHiro · 25/08/2023 19:24

Can I ask: why do you only have one child? I feel like the answer may provide some insight here.

Eh?

7eleven · 25/08/2023 19:50

Pollyputhekettleon · 25/08/2023 19:47

I know. I'm simply explaining why people get annoyed at those who assume bad behaviour is the result of not meeting emotional needs, where there's no evidence of it.

Of course. In this case and by the latest posts, it does seem to be the case, so it’s an appropriate question to raise.

7eleven · 25/08/2023 19:54

DDstress · 25/08/2023 19:49

I do really feel I have tried to be there emotionally for her as much as I can. So as a small child loads of cuddles, days put, bed time stories every night, telling her how much I loved her.

as she got older she fell out with her group of friends in year 9 and spent the next three years with no friends at school which was hard. I listened and reassured her. She made friends online with a group of girls her age playing MindCraft and I facilitated her meeting up with them a few times a year at various MineCon festivals and ComicCons.

she moved school for sixth form at her request and was very popular at sixth form with lots of friends. So things looked up then. She has friends now.

Don’t beat yourself up. I’m sure you’ve been a fine parent. Your DD does sound troubled (as well as overindulged). Doesn’t have to be your ‘fault’ if you know what I mean.

If something happened to her at uni (without you saying I think we can all have an idea what that might be) then that will have caused a lot of trauma.

ImNotWorthy · 25/08/2023 19:55

Sorry, but you need to disengage with her, and let her make her own mistakes.

And by the way, the Capital Limit for claiming UC can't be avoided by her giving any of the £24K away, or spending it madly, if she claims after that, her bank statements will be checked as part of the process to see if anything like that has been done prior to the claim, and it will be counted back in as if she's still got it (deprivation of capital).

Any advice on benefits (and many other things) she can obtain by consulting the CAB.

SoSad44 · 25/08/2023 19:58

Here are the requirements for an Au-pair visa in Italy. Don’t give her 8k for a language course! Half the point of being an au-pair is learning the language by being with a local family.

Au Pair in Italy: visa information
The Au Pair will need the following to apply:

  • a statement of the health insurance
  • proof of enrollment in a language course
  • copy of a booked ticket to Italy
  • passport
  • letter of invitation from the Host Family
  • proof of sufficient savings to stay in Italy
  • They will need to be 18-30 years old
IWantOutDoI · 25/08/2023 20:00

Lindy2 · 25/08/2023 18:05

My DD15 has ADHD and ASD. Your daughter is displaying a lot of neuro diverse traits. Any demand that feels overwhelming (this can be even a very small demand) causes a drama.

My DD is also always the victim and seems to crave attention by telling dramatic stories. We are also terrible parents according to her. I hate to think what she actually says about us.

It is extremely difficult. I have no answers.

At 22 though I'd cut back on funding her. You need to break that habit.

My DS has ADHD and a couple of extra disabilities, I have ADHD as well. We get stressed, overwhelmed etc but we do make other people take the brunt of our frustrations. How come we don’t? Both DS and I have parents who made it clear, from the start, that they won’t be putting up with that shite.

if your child doesn’t explode with other adults but abuses you, it is not because she feels safe around you, it is because you know you will allow that behaviour.

Dryona · 25/08/2023 20:01

YukoandHiro · 25/08/2023 19:24

Can I ask: why do you only have one child? I feel like the answer may provide some insight here.

Seriously? What the hell has that got to do with anything?!

longestlurkerever · 25/08/2023 20:03

My dd has ADHD and ASD and I do recognize sone of the overwhelm responses. She's a lot younger than your DD and already learning better coping mechanisms but it can be really challenging to navigate the emotional responses. I would potentially pursue this if you can, but even if you get a diagnosis it won't necessarily give you all the answers. A bit of space for her to work out how to best arrange her life is likely to be for the best

viques · 25/08/2023 20:04

Is the car in your name or hers? I think I would sell it if it is still in your name. Certainly don’t offer to tax and insure it while she is away if it isn’t parked off road.

SoSad44 · 25/08/2023 20:05

Good idea @viques if she is away for a year she doesn’t need her car and it can fund her laptop and language course etc

BaronessEllarawrosaurus · 25/08/2023 20:05

While the requirements posted above are correct they are only part of it and if the person intends to stay for more than 90 days as an au pair then they need a student visa.

Adult  Dd hates me and right now I don’t like her very much either.  Very long, sorry.
mindbogglingmaths · 25/08/2023 20:08

Stop enabling her.

Give her 6 weeks notice to find somewhere else to live. She has PLENTY of money to pay a deposit and pay her way. I have never in my life had £24k in an account - ever. STOP PAYING HER BILLS.

You are causing this. You stop it. You smile, and you be nice with it, but you basically tell her in no uncertain terms she's an adult now and it's time to stand on her own two feet. Smile smile smile. But dear god, she's an entitled brat.

Twilight7777 · 25/08/2023 20:08

Sounds more personality disorder than autism/adhd, when I do something wrong I try everything I can to put it right or apologise, but doesn’t sound like she does this.

felisha54 · 25/08/2023 20:10

She sounds massively over indulged. I have one dc and financially we can do what you done, but I will try and be as restraint as possible (hard I know) as I don't want them to turn into a brat. Nobody likes a self entitled spoilt person.