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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

My mum's behaviour is becoming impossible.

14 replies

TickleThePickle · 09/10/2020 15:49

She has a mental health problem, she has basically had MH issues my whole life. It has been almost impossible to get her any help. God knows I have tried. I have siblings who try and help her too......they are also exhausted by her behaviour. We all try to do practical stuff to help her but she never see's this and instead she tells us we do nothing to help her and constantly put too much on her. I never ask her for anything. My kids don't need babysitting (they are teens) and my siblings usually ask for small things like lifts or if she can do the school run (which she could say no to) I listen to her moan and go on for hours on end. I always give her proactive advice, try to help her find solutions and help her rationalise things. She does listen to me too when I need to talk so it isn't all one sided in that respect. I have told her not to offer help to other people if she can't manage it. She is perfectly entitled to say no and not give an explanation to other people. But she says yes then moans about how exhausted she feels from doing it.
At the moment she is just hysterical about everything. She can't cope with ANYTHING. The smallest tasks usually results in meltdown. She shouts and screams at me all the time about things that are nothing to do with me. It often feels like the boundary of our relationship has been blurred and I end up being a therapist more than a daughter.
Yesterday she behaved appallingly towards a relative and I lost my shit- I told her off and said what she said was totally out of order. She just kept saying she is at the end of her tether like it's some kind of excuse and that we don't understand what she is going through. We patched things up and I thought it was over and done with. Today she called me, we talked about normal day to day stuff and then all of a sudden she went off on one, told me not to talk until she had finished and proceeded to yell at me about what I had said to her the day before, that I fail to see that she isn't in the right frame of mind and so horrible stuff comes out of her mouth - that would be fine if it was a one off but it isn't and she regularly has outbursts where nasty words get said and then blamed on her frame of mind. She can't see anything from anyone else's point of view. She is the victim in everything. Always a million times worse off than everyone else. No one else understands her. No one cares. She goes on and on about how we all make her feel like she isn't good enough and that she is a bad person. That she has been told her whole life what a bad person she is......you can not say anything in the slightest bit critical to her or she wheels that one out. I am sick of being a punch bag for her bad moods. I understand that to some degree she can't help what she is going through but equally sometimes you have to take a bit of responsibility of things and help yourself.

I love her very much which is why I keep trying to help her and have stuck around but right now I could cry with how she is behaving. I might sound like I don't care but I am tired of this, I had to put up with it to varying degrees throughout my childhood, along with a load of other trauma (that no one could have helped including my mum, none of us in my family have had an easy ride) I have my own mental health problems that I am trying my best to fix- I had to take time off sick the last week to try and sort myself out. I felt I was getting a grip back on things and came back to work today and she's been screaming down the phone at me and sending messages on Facebook. I am so tired of doing my best to help her and having it thrown back in my face, equally I don't buy into the "I've got shit going on in my life, therefor I can speak to you like crap" mentality. I almost didn't post this because if she ever read how I feel the fallout would be horrendous......I worry that she might do something stupid. I have spoken to her GP but they have done nothing.

I am not sure what I am asking, I just needed a safe place to vent and I guess if anyone has any advice then I would greatly accept it.

OP posts:
FlorenceNightshade · 09/10/2020 15:57

Hugs for you OP what a crap time you’re having.

The only advice that ever felt useful to me was that no one's mental health takes priority over yours. If her behaviour is negatively impacting your MH then you need to take a step back and protect yourself. Tell your mum that you need space, tell your siblings how you feel and go LC for as long as you need to.

LonelyFromCorona · 09/10/2020 16:06

Sounds extremely emotionally draining, look after yourself and your kids and spend more of your energy there than on her.

Reduce contact, you and your siblings can all have very brief, limited contact with her as and when it suits you. She is an adult and can look after herself - if her MH issues affect that, seek appropriate support from NHS, council/care services.

TickleThePickle · 09/10/2020 16:15

@FlorenceNightshade my sister has been really lovely and kind to me. She is going to take the lead for a bit so I can sort myself out.

@LonelyFromCorona the MH provisions in my area are rubbish- we have tried to get her help so many times. They just try and ply you with more pills. I think she needs psychotherapy.

OP posts:
Dollyrocket · 09/10/2020 16:23

Sorry OP this sounds incredibly draining.Flowers

I’m going to be a little harsh here.. The cycle of her outbursts at your and your siblings will only reduce if you all stop enabling her with constant forgiveness for her behaviour. At the end of the day she knows full well that you will all ultimately tolerate it and forgive after.. She has no motivation to change her ways or get help for herself.

Bottom line, she’s abusive and you’re all allowing her to use her MH as a get out of jail free card.

Unless you all make a conscious effort to change the dynamic, she won’t. Sad

AttilaTheMeerkat · 09/10/2020 16:32

What you've tried has not worked. It is not your fault she is like this and you did not make her that way.

Stop with trying to help your mother; she does not want it and you as a family and individuals are totally not at all equipped to help her. The only person you can help here is your own self.

Enabling her and you and your siblings have done here has not worked and only also gives you a false sense of control. You have to back away otherwise your mother will continue to drag you down.

Your mother is ultimately not your responsibility; what she has done here is make you codependent in this relationship and otherwise make you feel responsible for her.

What if anything do you know about her childhood, that often gives clues. As for pyschotherapy you cannot make someone engage with this or any other service if it is not wanted. The thing is she still has you and your siblings around to worry about her and or try and help; you should all personally step away now.

TickleThePickle · 09/10/2020 16:48

@AttilaTheMeerkat she had a really bad time with her mother (who was mentally abused as a child) and left home at 16. Her dad was lovely and kind to her but didn't stick up for her enough.
It feels like my mums problems ramped up a gear when her mum died.

She does want treatment but she can't afford to go privately and the NHS keep telling us she isn't bad enough/doesn't meet the criteria.

I am trying to distance myself when she becomes nasty and walk away. I have stopped engaging with her when she yells and I put the phone down or leave the room however this has been going on for so long and has little by little got worse and worse until we are at the point we are. Its like a drip effect and you don't notice how bad it is until you step back and take stock of things.

OP posts:
SewingBeeAddict · 09/10/2020 16:50

@TickleThePickle

She has a mental health problem, she has basically had MH issues my whole life. It has been almost impossible to get her any help. God knows I have tried. I have siblings who try and help her too......they are also exhausted by her behaviour. We all try to do practical stuff to help her but she never see's this and instead she tells us we do nothing to help her and constantly put too much on her. I never ask her for anything. My kids don't need babysitting (they are teens) and my siblings usually ask for small things like lifts or if she can do the school run (which she could say no to) I listen to her moan and go on for hours on end. I always give her proactive advice, try to help her find solutions and help her rationalise things. She does listen to me too when I need to talk so it isn't all one sided in that respect. I have told her not to offer help to other people if she can't manage it. She is perfectly entitled to say no and not give an explanation to other people. But she says yes then moans about how exhausted she feels from doing it. At the moment she is just hysterical about everything. She can't cope with ANYTHING. The smallest tasks usually results in meltdown. She shouts and screams at me all the time about things that are nothing to do with me. It often feels like the boundary of our relationship has been blurred and I end up being a therapist more than a daughter. Yesterday she behaved appallingly towards a relative and I lost my shit- I told her off and said what she said was totally out of order. She just kept saying she is at the end of her tether like it's some kind of excuse and that we don't understand what she is going through. We patched things up and I thought it was over and done with. Today she called me, we talked about normal day to day stuff and then all of a sudden she went off on one, told me not to talk until she had finished and proceeded to yell at me about what I had said to her the day before, that I fail to see that she isn't in the right frame of mind and so horrible stuff comes out of her mouth - that would be fine if it was a one off but it isn't and she regularly has outbursts where nasty words get said and then blamed on her frame of mind. She can't see anything from anyone else's point of view. She is the victim in everything. Always a million times worse off than everyone else. No one else understands her. No one cares. She goes on and on about how we all make her feel like she isn't good enough and that she is a bad person. That she has been told her whole life what a bad person she is......you can not say anything in the slightest bit critical to her or she wheels that one out. I am sick of being a punch bag for her bad moods. I understand that to some degree she can't help what she is going through but equally sometimes you have to take a bit of responsibility of things and help yourself.

I love her very much which is why I keep trying to help her and have stuck around but right now I could cry with how she is behaving. I might sound like I don't care but I am tired of this, I had to put up with it to varying degrees throughout my childhood, along with a load of other trauma (that no one could have helped including my mum, none of us in my family have had an easy ride) I have my own mental health problems that I am trying my best to fix- I had to take time off sick the last week to try and sort myself out. I felt I was getting a grip back on things and came back to work today and she's been screaming down the phone at me and sending messages on Facebook. I am so tired of doing my best to help her and having it thrown back in my face, equally I don't buy into the "I've got shit going on in my life, therefor I can speak to you like crap" mentality. I almost didn't post this because if she ever read how I feel the fallout would be horrendous......I worry that she might do something stupid. I have spoken to her GP but they have done nothing.

I am not sure what I am asking, I just needed a safe place to vent and I guess if anyone has any advice then I would greatly accept it.

OP Im going through the same thing with a close relative. Streams and tirades of abuse and Im the cause of everything and cant stand me. Next day texting as normal ,like nothing has happened Confused Its abuse, verbal and emotional, she is transferring negative emotions about herself onto you. I replied that as they cant stand me we will have contact only once per month to maintain relations but I need time and space. Best thing Ive ever done, its such a relief
TickleThePickle · 09/10/2020 17:29

@SewingBeeAddict sorry that you are going through something similar. My mum messaged me and said she is going away for the weekend so didn't want to leave on a bad note and said she loved me. She flips from being so angry to that......it leaves me wondering half the time if its me with the problem.

I definitely need to take a step back.

OP posts:
AttilaTheMeerkat · 09/10/2020 17:37

She is doing to you and your siblings as her own mother did to her. Her own father was his wife’s enabler and did not otherwise intervene. He failed your mother too as a parent.

Your mother had a choice here when it came to you and instead of seeking the necessary help she has meted out the same abuse to you people.

You really do need to back away now for your own sake. You cannot help anyone who does not want to be rescued or saved.

Some disordered of thinking people do have untreated and untreatable personality disorders. How are you convinced that she does want treatment at all (debateable) or does she merely want to continue to use you and your siblings as her own personal emotional punch bags?

AttilaTheMeerkat · 09/10/2020 17:41

And no it’s not you, it’s her. This is all on her tickle the pickle. If she can afford to go away for the weekend then she could use that money towards actually seeking a private based psychologist. But she has not and will not particularly as long as any of you are still around listening as her audience.

You need to get off the merry go round.

Would you tolerate this from a friend, I dare say that no you would not. Your mother is no different.

AlwaysCheddar · 09/10/2020 17:57

She doesn’t seem to want help. Break the cycle and go NC for a while.

pooopypants · 09/10/2020 18:13

Have you considered that your own MH issues may be exacerbated by your mum's problems? Either way, it sounds very unhealthy and toxic.

My advice would be go NC - she'll never see that she's in the wrong or admit fault.

Also, could you record a conversation with her, or an argument, and show either her or a professional how bad she actually is? Neither you nor your DC are to blame here but your role is to protect your DC and mental health Flowers

SewingBeeAddict · 09/10/2020 18:41

[quote TickleThePickle]@SewingBeeAddict sorry that you are going through something similar. My mum messaged me and said she is going away for the weekend so didn't want to leave on a bad note and said she loved me. She flips from being so angry to that......it leaves me wondering half the time if its me with the problem.

I definitely need to take a step back.[/quote]
You are not the problem.
The flipping is designed to wrong foot and make you constantly uncertain and Im sorry to say, easier to manipulate.
If you really were a wrong 'un then she would just keep away.

SewingBeeAddict · 09/10/2020 18:43

I should add that now Ive put the boundary of once a month contact in place it feels like a weight has lifted off me.
Im like a whole new person Smile

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