Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

Boyfriend's sister making my life a misery (v.long!)

10 replies

happyyummum · 01/11/2010 13:16

Don?t know if anyone will be able to make any suggestions as to my current situation, but I?m sure that even just getting it all described and typed out will do me some good.

I live with my boyfriend of 6 years. We are happy together, get along well and have 1 child. The only fly in the ointment is my BF?s younger sister. She is three years younger than him and slowly driving a rift between me and my BF.

To give you a bit of background, their parents split up when they were growing up and his sister has never got along with their Dad?s new wife. They both blame the new wife, who isn?t the nicest person in the world but not that bad. Basically, my BF has watched over his sister since the split happened and I think feels a bit responsible for her.

The woman (now 31), is extremely standoffish, abrupt, rude and behaves much like a teenager. She?s heavily overweight, moans all the time and lives on her own. As they were growing up. she hung around with my boyfriend a lot and his ex of 7 years. When they split, she remained friends with her. Back to that in a minute?

My BF knows that I don?t really like his sister. Despite my efforts to get along with her, she?s repeatedly said and done things to hurt/upset me. She also really wants more to do with our baby, but she really isn?t responsible enough. As it stands I am happy for her to watch him for the odd hour or so, or to babysit when he?s asleep, but she wants him over to stay at hers all the time. She?s had other children in her care and they?ve ended up in casualty due to her negligence and stupidity, so I keep saying no to this but my BF hates me for it and says I should give her a chance.

When I had my son, she came to visit the day after and sat talking about my BF?s ex?s baby ? to MY family and friends?! She makes nasty comments about the way I dress my little lad, she grabs him when we go visiting the whole family and takes him away so she has him to herself. God, the list is endless!

Right now, their Dad is terminally ill. BF?s sister practically lives at the hospital and refuses to leave his side, which is understandable, but she doesn?t even let his wife have time alone with him, which is awful to see. But again, my BF doesn?t say anything to her, he just defends her.

Finally, she has planned a birthday party in a few months time, invited all the family ? and my BF?s ex! She?s already been told by my BF, that if his ex is present at events, we won?t be going, but with all that is going on, I think she may well turn on the waterworks on the day in an attempt to persuade my BF to go ? just to upset me. She'd absolutely love for me to be at home on my on and my BF to be there with her and his ex and me completely left out.

This may sound petty, but this is a person who told everyone she had swine flu, and took two weeks off work, yet displayed none of the symptoms. She calls her step mother to high heaven to anyone that will listen, she doesn?t get on well with her own mother and treats her really badly, for no apparent reason. She only ever wants my BF, their Dad, or our son. Their step sister is my friend and also sees this woman for what she is, as do many other people who know her. The only person who seemingly can?t see it is my BF.

Has anyone any advice at all? With my BF?s Dad so ill, now is not really the time to be bringing this up and I will of course, wait the weeks, months ? however long, until the time is right to discuss this with him, it?s just making me so unhappy. She is even using the current situation with their dad, to manipulate my BF. She tells him to visit on his own or just with our son, as too many visitors tire their Dad out, yet she sits there all day with two of her friends. The woman is just a real nasty piece of work.

I?m starting to wonder if I can continue my relationship with my boyfriend if this is how life is going to be ? him getting angry at me for not welcoming her into our lives, while she makes her snidey remarks, manipulates my BF and causes arguments..

OP posts:
thatsnotmyfruitshoot · 01/11/2010 13:32

God, she sounds utterly poisonous. I'd distance yourself as much as you possibly can for the moment, and then have it out with your BF as soon as you can. The party is a really good reason for you to bring it up. Your BF needs to show you that his primary loyalty is to you, not her.

Meanwhile, I just wouldn't ever leave her alone with your ds, she sounds unhinged tbh. I hope you can get this sorted, it sounds really stressful to live with.

dignified · 01/11/2010 13:32

Theres been a few similar threads lateley , and ill say what i said on there . The sister isnt the problem here , your boyfreind is . Its his sister , and his job to insist she treats you properly . They both sound like theyve got poor boundaries , her for behaving this way , and him for allowing it.

Your under no obligation to have her in your life if you dont want to , he is quite capable of spending time with her on his own. Before you met him it was up to you who you spent time with , who you liked and did not , and its still up to you now. Your partner needs to respect your feelings about this , and if he wont youve got bigger problems than a nutty sister in law.

Why not just cut her out ? Ive had similar problems with in laws and eventually i just cut them out , but it was part of a much bigger problem.
I really dont think its about the sister . If you knew he didnt like a member of your family ( for good reason ) would you push him to spend time with them ?

perfumedlife · 01/11/2010 13:35

Oh she sounds like a sad individual. Are you really sure all the kids ended up in A&E because of her negligence? If so, there is no way I would hand her my child. Nope, none./

I think your bf is the problem here though. His relationship and responsibility should be to you and your child. He simply needs to say no to her party. And mean it.

happyyummum · 01/11/2010 13:41

thankyou to itsnotmyfruitshoot and dignified!

To answer your points - i've already mentioned the party and she's told him she 'just sent out an open invite on facebook' - his ex isn't even ON facebook! My BF ignored this fact and instead pointed out how he doesn't need this aggro right now, which of course, he doesn't so I've had to shut up about it.

Ii'd love to cut her out, but my BF will simply not allow it. Every photo we take of our boy is sent to her, every thing that happens with him, she's informed about and the rest of his family, their mum especially, would be upset to learn of her being cut out - even though his sister treats their mum badly too!

I really don't want for this to end up as an ultimatum, but i'm starting to lose sleep over things now. it's little things at the minute too, like her calling my BF first thing every morning for comfort over their dad - whih is fine, don't get me wrong, but she calls him on his way to work and upsets him. He then works a ten hour day in a stressfull job worrying about their Dad and her because she makes out like he's the only person who understands her.

She's really using their dad's illness to her own advantage and it's killing me to watch it happen. I have to repeatedly bite my tongue!

OP posts:
happyyummum · 01/11/2010 13:43

thankyou perfumedlife, to give him his due, he has said no - before I pointed out that she'd invited his family as well as his ex. He then wasn't very pleased and said he'd have a word and tell her to uninvite his ex, which was something. However, I don't want to go now that she's done this anyway! I'm just suspicious that she's going to manipulate him on the day!

OP posts:
happyyummum · 01/11/2010 13:46

My other massive looking problem is Christmas. BF wants to spend Christmas with his Dad, if he is still here, which is fine, but if he is not, he still wants to spend it with his sister, Mum and step-Dad. Now on the one hand, I can understand him, but on the other I realise he is just not wanting his sister to be on her own, despite the fact she walks around saying she hates christmas! I really really really don't want to have to spend christmas Day with the woman! It's just going to cause so many arguments i'm dreading it!

OP posts:
dignified · 01/11/2010 14:00

Ii'd love to cut her out, but my BF will simply not allow it.

Its not his call , he doesnt get to decide who you spend time with - you do. He can continue to send her pictures / have her ring him ect , but you can opt out of having any direct contact with her . I understand the phone calls are annoying , but really thats between the two of them . If he then relays and offloads onto you i think its reasonable to say you dont want to discuss her. Its his choice if he allows her to upset him , just make sure it doesnt affect you .

Ideally your partner would establish some firm boundaries with her , but seeing as hes not going to youll have to firmly establish some for yourself . I know its annoying to watch your partner getting stressed and manipulated by her , but really , thats his choice , you dont have to be affected by it.

I had years of this , my ex relayed everything to his family , there was daily phone calls where he would come off the phone stressed out and i was expected to listen and sympathise . I snapped one day after over hearing him discussing my periods with his mother and stated they werent welcome in my home , i wouldnt be going there again , that he was free to relay every aspect of his own life to them , but not mine , and that i was never ever going to have another conversation about his family ever again, and i didnt.

Any attempt to discuss it was shut down straight away .

2rebecca · 01/11/2010 15:26

She isn't driving a rift between you and your boyfriend, he is.
He sounds very inconsiderate of you and as though he doesn't consider you a couple.
You should both decide where to spend xmas together, or would he be happy for you and your son to go to your family for xmas whilst he goes to his parents?
This relationship sounds doomed unless you prioritise each other.
I agree that you cutting out his sister doesn't mean he has to.
You don't have to do what he says.
It sounds as though you could do with moving away.

msboogieHallowqueen · 02/11/2010 00:14

An ultimatum is only a bad thing if you don't mean it or are unprepared to accept the undesired outcome. If this issue has become a dealbreaker then tell him so, but make like you mean it and follow through if he doesn't man up.

happyyummum · 02/11/2010 14:56

Hi guys, thankyou so much for your wise words and trying to help, it is appreciated! For now I must continue to keep my mouth shut as it's not the right time to be discussing this with my boyfriend but I have taken on board everything that has been said.

thankyou xxx

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page