Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

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

Am I wrong?

15 replies

Tiddlesem · 01/07/2024 11:09

So I have a sister who is 6 years older than me. Growing up she would pick on me a lot until I would end up in fits of tears, she showed favouritism to our younger sister and made it very obvious she preferred her over me. As we got older it was very much the same. I find her to be arrogant, shuts down my opinions or contradicts them. I feel as though I am walking on eggshells around her and cant be myself for fear of offending her. We are just very very different people and I suspect don't like each other much. She also physically attacked me years ago. We so not see each other often at all maybe a couple of times a year.

We both have 2 DCs, hers are older than mine and her son has significant ASD non verbal. My DD is also query ASD/ADHD but funtions pretty well. We spent time with them recently and I really got the sense that she was looking for some help from me with her child during the summer months. She is currently not working but looking for work and was talking a lot about how hard it is, which i sympathise with. It just really felt that she was trying to insinuate that she wanted me to offer help.

My question is I do not feel any obligation to help her but am i very mean for not wanting to help or not offering help? I think she is self serving and trying to use me. She has done this before when we lived together briefly where she would hint at things or would leave her child with me and go off somewhere without saying anything. Am I wrong to not want to help? I can understand that it is very difficult for them with a child with significant needs but because of how she treated me in the past and how badly she has effected my self esteem I do feel like I have any obligation. Wondering what others think?

OP posts:
Beautifulbythebay · 01/07/2024 11:12

You reap what you sow.... Leave her to it op.

MounjaroUser · 01/07/2024 11:25

You owe her nothing. She's not working so she can look after her own child. Do you really think she'd help you if you needed it? You wouldn't see her for dust.

Tiddlesem · 01/07/2024 11:31

She would only offer to help me or look after our children if she knew she was being reciprocated for it. I am doing very difficult therapy at the moment going through my whole childhood and realising the extent of abuse that i suffered at the hands of my own family. They were my first bullies. I'm so grateful to be in a stronger place mentally to be able to see her behaviour for what it is!

OP posts:
MounjaroUser · 01/07/2024 11:33

You really need to step away from her so you're not in a position for her to ask for help. "Oh that's a shame" - that sort of thing. Please don't look after her child even for an hour - it'll be the thin end of the wedge and she'll know she can force you to do what she wants.

MounjaroUser · 01/07/2024 11:34

How do you normally communicate?

Tiddlesem · 01/07/2024 11:38

We don't really have much communication to be honest. The occasional text here and there. It's not much. So it's not like I will be in an immediate position where she will try to ask but its just even having to listen to her talking like that and trying to not allow myself to feel guilty as they are my nephews but not my responsibility. I believe she tries to take advantage of people she thinks she can use.

OP posts:
Purplecatshopaholic · 01/07/2024 11:39

I would leave her to it. Tough shit! If she starts hinting, nod, sympathise, ‘that’s must be hard’, etc, but do not offer to help. She made her bed.

Motherofalittledragon · 01/07/2024 11:41

Nope her problem, leave her to it.

Inspireme2 · 01/07/2024 11:46

Dont help.
What will happen if anything goes wrong with her child in your care, etc,
Just dont you owe her nothing.
Work on your owb self and your own family.
No shame in avoiding her.

MounjaroUser · 01/07/2024 11:47

I believe she tries to take advantage of people she thinks she can use

Keep this at the forefront of your mind the whole time.

She's always seen you as a victim, someone she can bully. The less you see of her the better. If she messages anything like that, leave it a day or two then reply, 'Yes, it's tough with X, too. Hope you get it sorted' and leave it at that. Your duty now is to your own children, not to your dysfunctional birth family.

Tiddlesem · 01/07/2024 12:04

Thanks everyone for the great advice. @MounjaroUser would you believe whenever i ever try to talk about my own children and some of things I struggle with she just brushes it off, oh that's normal and kind of looks at me like how dare you try to compare to my difficulties with yours. Its like I can't even speak to her about my own children, it's all about her her her. And it's not like I'm trying to compare, I listen to her and sympathise and then will just share some things that I can relate to.

OP posts:
StrawberryWater · 01/07/2024 12:09

I wouldn't.

I have a child with ASD/ADHD and I know it's hard but your sister sounds like an awful human being and you owe her no favours.

Also even if you said yes, she would just find fault with things and how you were looking after him.

Imagine it op:
Oh you gave him a strawberry yoghurt? Are you useless? You know he prefers banana. I don't care if he ate all the strawberry, I said banana. Do you know how to look after children? What kind of a mother are you!*

(*yes this is a real tirade given to me by one of my sisters. Mad old bint).

Chocolately · 01/07/2024 12:12

It sounds like you've got the measure of her and have good boundaries. As PPs have said, empathise with her, but don't feel like you have to help her. She can hint/ask people for help that she has been kinder to. See if that works.

GetThatBloodyFaceOff · 01/07/2024 12:20

You don't owe her anything, OP. Let her sort her own problems out.

AGodawfulsmallaffair · 01/07/2024 12:30

God no. Fuck her.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread