I'm Beginning to Call Out My Nmom
Hi, I'm really new here, but I wanted to share some of my experiences recently and see if they really check the boxes for narcissistic behavior. This is a bit rambly, and is not the only instance of potentially narc behavior, but it was my wakeup call.
I (26) called my mom to tell her that my fiance and I split, after 11 years together. I put it off for over a week, since I was afraid she'd have an "I told you so" attitude, and I couldn't handle that.
Finally, I couldn't put it off any longer, and I called. The first words out of her mouth were "I figured this would happen." Not sorry to hear that, no asking how I was doing, no asking what happened. Her initial response was about her, not her devastated child. I almost cried, and responded "Yeah, I'm holding up fine, thanks for asking." And I hung up. I haven't spoken to her since.
She called me back immediately, and left a message saying "I didn't mean to sound like that, I love you."
Fifteen minutes later, she messages me "I love you."
Fifteen more minutes, and she finally says the words I was waiting for: "I'm sorry." It took her 30 min to say those words.
I'd been messaging my sister by this point, since mom immediately called her about it. Sister was supportive. I was exhausted and had cried because my worst expectations for my mom came true, and I hate when my anxiety is right. I decide I'll message her tomorrow. She did say sorry, and both dad and sister say she regrets what she said.
1:30 am, I get a message. "I know you're going through a hard time right now, but calling me unsupportive really hurt my feelings." She proceeds to shame me for not reaching out during a very rough patch in her life, one where she made things worse for herself and where I could not support her, where she was in the wrong. "I'm sorry you got upset, but I won't apologize for not acting surprised. Remember, you hung up on me. The door is always open."
She has left several voice messages, all of them say "I love you." Only one actually says the word "sorry," and it's "I'm sorry this happened the way it did."
I don't know what to do, and I don't know how to approach her. I'm pretty sure she at least has some strong narcissistic tendencies. I want to contact her and set things straight, but I don't know how to do that without her winning.
Posted Jul 21, 2020, 1:09 AM UTC
So I talked to my therapist about calling out my mom and she doesn’t recommend it because anything you did wrong “she told you already” and anything you did right is a result of her being a good mother, there’s no winning only making healthy boundaries
Thank you. I do have an appointment Wednesday with my therapist, and I plan on digging deep into this.
I don't think I can keep in touch if I don't call her out. I'd rather fight at this point than try to pretend everything is alright. I've never fought her in my life, I've always been her passive little clone, and I'm completely done with it. We've been on the rocks since I came out as agender, and that was when I was finally able to start separating myself from her.
I'm independent, so I don't have to worry about that, but I'm worried about seeing my dad again :( I love him dearly, but I'm worried if I piss her off bad enough, he won't listen to me and he will support her.
At the end of the day your father is his own person. You can love him and it’s very sad but choose what is the best for your health, he’s a grown man and his decisions are his own no matter what your mother says. I’m very sorry you are going through this though.
Thanks, you're right. I'll wait until after I talk to my therapist before I confront my mom, she's always good at helping me figure out my boundaries and how to keep them and not feel bad for it.