I (18M) feel like I had to raise my parents (34F, 34M) and my siblings and I'm so burnt out and tired of being the adult in the relationship but they still want me around?
My parents had me as teenagers and they were not the teen parents who matured up when they had a kid. If anything I think it made them get stuck as teenagers forever. We lived with my mom's parents until I was 5 and then my mom's parents got so tired of having us around. To be a little fair to my mom her parents seemed to resent having a kid and they sure as hell resented having a grandkid so that might have stunted her. But I still think she could have grown up more. As for her parents? I can't remember a single nice thing about them other than they let us live there for five years. Once we were kicked out we never saw them and they wanted nothing to do with any one of us.
The first couple of years of the three of us being out on our own my parents got into the habit of unloading emotional burdens on me. Or asking me to help make big decisions. I even remember my mom asking me if she should get a job or if she should stay "home" with me. Home was a car and then a shelter and then a car again. I remember my dad asking if we should spend an extra night at the shelter or go back to the car and have privacy. Stuff like that was asked of me. Then it was stuff like should we move or should we be saving money. I didn't go to school like I should back then and it was a really bad couple of years. Things improved slightly when we got government assisted housing. But that's when my parents started to ask me to do more. They'd ask if I could cook or they'd tell me I might be better than them. Or they'd ask me to keep the house clean and even make their bed.
A year later the first of my siblings was born and so much got handed off to me like bottles and diapers and bed time. I was also the therapist/parent who would have them vent about how hard it was and I would be asked for my opinion on stuff. I had no clue at that age. I was 8. I wasn't old enough for any of that but it didn't stop it from happening. And each time one of my four siblings was born the pattern would repeat with the crying on my shoulder and asking for parenting advice and for me to convince them they could do it while shouldering a lot of the responsibilities.
There were also times when one or both of my parents was unemployed and were unmotivated to find other jobs. We struggled bad when it happened.
My siblings call me dad seriously. They call mom and dad a mix of their names and nicknames mom and dad gave each other. Mom and dad don't mind at all. They even said I should find it sweet because it means they see everything I do for them. My parents also encouraged my siblings to be bratty. They all sorta copy each other and it was so frustrating. There were times I didn't do anything for a few days and nothing was done and I was the big meanie who didn't make dinner or make sure things were run the way they should be run.
CPS was called to the house a couple of times and they did absolutely nothing to help. I guess I was running things too well or something because yeah, nothing at all happened after.
In May I graduated (just about) and I moved in with a friend the day after. It's still very new. I'm working full time for the first time and living without the burden of my family and their needs. I'm tired of being the adult for my parents and siblings so being an adult just for me has been nice. But my parents and siblings still call and want a relationship with me. My youngest sister begged me to come home when dad called the other day. I feel a tiny bit guilty but also not really. After I moved out CPS was called on them again but it doesn't seem like anything happened again. It might just take more time idk.
I'm looking for advice on what I should do. I can't afford therapy but I will try to save up for it. I'm also not going to college and right now my plan is to survive the best I can. But I don't know what to do about my family.
Posted Jul 6, 2026, 1:19 PM UTC