AITA for choosing to live with my father and not mother?
I (14 F) am going through a rough patch with my parents. I also have 2 brothers, Jeremy(9) and Aiden(20), and we’re all half related. All have different dads
For context, my parents split when I was a few months old and it was a whole thing with police, court dates and a lot more. My dad got custody of me during week days and my mom got custody on weekends (was like this until I was 8)
My mom (46 y/o) and dad (47 y/o) never married. My mom has always had a lot of issues with my dad, and 90% of the time, it was never my dad’s fault.
Anyway, when I was around 1 y/o, my dad married a woman, “Emily”. Then, when I was around 3 y/o, my mom married a man, “Tony”. Up until I was 8, Emily was more of a mom than my real one ever was. She never put me in danger, cared for me, and was an over all great “step-mom” in my life (got to the point where I called her mom sometimes).
My mom’s husband, Tony, was very much the opposite. He had a major drinking problem (and is the reason I have a fear of people who drink).
I never got to the point where I felt as if I could call him anything other than Tony. My dad and Emily never approved of the way Tony treated me. Emily always wanted my dad to do something about Tony, but my dad didn’t want to “burden” my life with court, and all that law stuff.
My mom had my younger brother with Tony. (Aidens dad is deceased)
Tony never showed me or Aiden any kindness. Tony really messed up Aiden, causing him to be really closed off from everyone, including me, our mom, and basically the whole world. (Aiden lived with Tony from the age of 9-16). And, obviously gave me some ptsd problems. Our mom never stood up for us, and always took Tony’s side on everything. Me, Aiden, Jeremy, my dad, my mom, and Tony lived in Wisconsin until I was 7. (Aiden was 15 and Jeremy was 3) and we ALL moved to Florida so I could still see my mom and brothers.
Tony’s mental abuse continued between me and Aiden, and my mom still did nothing about it.
Then, my dad and Emily got a divorce when I was 8. I was really sad to see her go, but my dad shielded me from bad arguments they would constantly have so I’m glad my dad protected me from that.
Then, me and my dad were in a bad financial situation. (I had a sort of life threatening accident so hospital bills ate at my dad’s savings and money). My dad wanted me to be close to my mom and brothers still, so with approval from my mom, (and somehow Tony) my dad moved into their basement at their house. I stayed in the bedroom I would stay in when being there on weekends, and it was good for a few months. My dad being there didn’t stop Tony’s mental abuse though. When my dad was busy, Tony would find any way to be increasingly mean to me.
BUT! Eventually, me and my dad found a house a few minutes away from their house, and we moved. (4 bedroom, 2 bathroom)
Aiden ended up moving with us, and to my surprise, my mom talked my dad into letting her live with me and him. (Only because my dad wanted me to be close with my mom and brothers) So, she left Tony. Aiden moved in a few days after we did, followed by my mom a few days after. My mom attempted to get shared custody of Jeremy with Tony, but Tony moved back to Wisconsin and didn’t even bother taking Jeremy. My mom got full custody of Jeremy, and the five of us ended up living together.
Jeremy wasn’t affected at all since he was so young when it all happened, but me and Aiden had to adjust. Aiden slowly got out of his shell that Tony made him crawl into, but my “ptsd” stayed with me.
Over the years, my mom and dad got back together but didn’t marry. (My dad doesn’t believe in marriage after divorce)
The two constantly got into arguments, (created by my mom over stupid things like my dad wanting to do something by himself like camping, or not wanting to go out to the casino when he didn’t have any extra money). My mom’s anger was constantly taken out on me specifically, causing me to be more closed off from her than I already was. She always took her problems out on me, blaming me for most things. (She also has some traits from her horrible mother like narcissistic and bipolar tendencies)
Then, last year, I was 13, Aiden was 19, and Jeremy was 8. My dad wanted us to move back to Wisconsin because my grandparents (his parents) are getting old and he wants to be with them while he can. It caused a big fight with my mom and she broke up with him, took Jeremy and stayed at her uncles house an hour away, and was going to move to Minnesota. She didn’t put me or Aiden into consideration AT ALL. She eventually left the decision up to me if she would leave or not. I asked her to stay and she did. My dad ended up letting them move back in, not for her but for me. But, the random argument’s continued over stupid things.
Then, in May,when my dad left town alone because a family friend almost died and my mom isn’t very fond of the people so my dad went alone. (I was fine with this, my mom was the only one who had a problem)
When he got back, they got into more arguments, and my dad talked to me and expressed that he wanted to move, break up with my mom, and me and him move. (If I didn’t want to move then we wouldn’t move)
Honestly, I wanted to leave. I never wanted to be in Florida in the first place, and my mom was making my life more of a hell than it already was. I was tired of being blamed for all the wrong things in her life, and so much more. My mom found out that I wanted to move away, and me and her got into constant arguments. She belittled me, made me think I was a horrible person with no heart, and was emotionless. Her saying all this to me only made me want to move more.
Then, she FAKED having a deadly blood infection to guilt trip me into staying, but it didn’t work and I found out she was faking. She then yelled at me more and left. (At this point, she moved out and is living with her uncle. Jeremy is out of town and up north). Me and my dad eventually got her to sign the agreement to let us move to a different state, but she continued to blame me and we still got into constant arguments.
Then, Aiden (now 20) has made the choice to move with me and my dad. He told my mom last Wednesday the he is moving with us, and she lost it. She started blaming me for my GROWN BROTHERS CHOICE, and started sobbing saying she was a horrible mom and asking what she did for both of her kids to want to leave her. We were in the car when this happened, so the ride back for her to drop us off at home was silent and awkward.
Then, the next day she stopped by to get the rest of her things, along with one of our dogs. (She made my dad pay her $400 for my dog so I can keep mine). I was heartbroken but I still have my dog, and my dad still has his dog. (The dog my mom took was siblings with my dog). When my mom was here, she was constantly mean to me, but the moment my aunt showed up my mom acted like an angel. My mom tried to take my dog prior but I shut that down quickly. (She went as far to try and lie about prices paid for the dog, but it didn’t work).
But my mom is still making me feel bad and blaming me for everything.
I know this is a really long post but Reddit has lots of helpful people on it and I don’t know what to think.
So, AITA for wanting to move away with my dad and not stay with my mom?
Posted Jun 23, 2026, 9:05 PM UTC