How do I heal my relationship with my younger sister?

Family Advice

I am the oldest, and my sister 7 years younger than me. I am 30, and she is 23. We were raised by a narcissistic mother and I was abused a lot more than she was. We have different fathers who were in and out of our lives. Being older, I have come to terms with my life and have very minimal contact with my mother. My sister, on the other hand, still is in frequent content with my mom.

This toxic triangle has really strained and challenged my sister and I's relationship. It seems like we can never see eye to eye. I am always upsetting her in ways I cant understand, and vice versa. It's like we are completely incompatible. People have always said, "sisters fight", and "she's will grow out of it". But how long am I to wait for this change that may never come?

She's moved across the US, and we rarely talk anymore. Recently, I expressed how much I wanted our relationship to work despite everything, and she told me that she really doesn't want speak to me again, so I should be lucky I even get texts from her.

I am so hurt. I want to respect her boundaries, I just do not want to give up on my little sister. Do you all have any advice how to handle this? Does it ever get better? How to I handle this grief?

Posted Feb 11, 2026, 10:17 PM UTC

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