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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

Adult children of (diagnosed or suspected) borderline mothers? Really feeling depressed tonight.

3 replies

MrBeansMother · 23/03/2019 22:23

New poster here, usually a lurker but today has pushed me to register and post. I want to see if anyone else can shed light or perspective on this behaviour from my dh. Dh grew up with a diagnosed borderline mother, his father passed away when he was young and she brought up him, his sister and brother alone. She is a difficult woman, lacks empathy and has awful interpersonal relationships etc. But these behaviours have had a severe effect on dh and his siblings and I feel in many ways I'm picking up the pieces.

I guess I'm just asking how anyone else in a similar position deals with this day to day? He is so loving and such an attentive father one minute and the next just emotionally unavailable, detatched and almost withdraws affection I feel to push my buttons. He has maintained brilliant boundaries with his mother and always protects me and our daughter from her nastiness, but in spite of this, he still seems to portray her own traits from time to time. I just feel drained dealing with it but thankfully over the years have learned to detach myself and stop blaming myself.

I don't know really why I'm asking, I guess just someone telling me they know what I'm talking about would help. Thanks for reading if you got this far.

OP posts:
peekyboo · 23/03/2019 22:40

Has he had counselling? How deliberate do you think it is? It can be hard to separate learned behaviour from someone being horrible in their own right.

I'm so pleased to hear he protects you from her. It says a lot about how he feels about you.

Have you talked to him about these times? And do you mention to him that he behaves like her when it happens?

MrBeansMother · 24/03/2019 14:05

Thanks Peekyboo

No i haven't told him i see similarities in their behaviours..i dont think his response would be great and doubt it would achieve much really. Such a draining situation.
No he's not had counselling, just refuses to go as he doesn't think any outside help will do anything.

OP posts:
HJWT · 24/03/2019 14:16

@MrBeansMother I think DH mum is borderline but she isn't diagnosed! She falls out with us constantly and expects everyone to drop what there doing when SHE needs them, she made a story up about her safety to try and force DH and I with a baby to drive 5 hours to pick her up in the middle of the night when we refused she screamed down the phone so many horrible things! We haven't spoken to her in a year but she makes up so many story's and believes them herself ... she had a brain aneurysm and STILL to this day pretends it is still effecting her (slurs her speech etc) when doctors say she is perfectly fine ..

My DH has a lot of mental health issues from his upbringing, he can have really good weeks and then for some days he just totally shuts of and becomes depressed.. he cant understand why his DM has never been there for him! He and his sister are very lucky they got out young, his DB did not and he is exactly like his parents 😬

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