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34
“AITAH For Asking My Daughters To Leave My House After What They Did To Their Half-Brother?”
Half-sibling relationships can be challenging to navigate, especially if the parents aren’t on good terms. The dynamics can be strained at best and drama-filled at worst, as you will see in the story you’re about to read.
A woman allowed her two adult daughters from another marriage to move back in with her. Things came to a head one day when the two young ladies neglected their sick half-brother, seemingly on purpose.
Upon learning what happened, the mom gave her daughters a week to leave her home. After a huge blowout fight, she is now re-evaluating her decision.
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Intense family drama erupted between a woman and her two daughters
Image credits: LightFieldStudios (not the actual photo)
The two young women living back home with their mom had an incident involving their seven-year-old half-brother
Image credits: nateemee (not the actual photo)
The mom admitted that she blew up and gave them one week to leave her home
Image credits: Affectionate_Sun4846
Half-sibling family dynamics can get messy
What happened in the story may be distressing, but it’s not as bad as similar family setups. According to a study published in the Oxford Research Encyclopedias, children who live with their half-siblings experience “poor educational outcomes.”
Likewise, they may go through depressive symptoms, poorer coping skills, and have a higher chance of engaging in risky behavior such as promiscuous activities and substance abuse.
According to Bowling Green State University associate professor of sociology Dr. Karen Guzzo, older children will likely experience these troubling episodes. The situation becomes less favorable if they have the same mother and different fathers.
In an interview with the university publication, Dr. Guzzo stated that these children are 65 percent more likely to have used illicit substances by the time they turn 15.
But what could cause these rifts? According to psychologist and author Dorothy Rowe, it’s the lack of attachment between half-siblings, especially if there is a significant age gap.
“A large difference in age can mean that the attachment is never formed and the usual level of identification with the new sibling may simply not be there,” Rowe told The Guardian, adding that the presence of the new sibling may exacerbate the broken relationships between parents.
Image credits: Getty Images (not the actual photo)
Parenting adult children should come from a place of understanding
The mom’s reaction appeared to be more of a punishment for her daughters’ actions. She didn’t seem to get to the bottom of the situation and ask why they handled it the way they did. Instead, she admittedly blew up and called them “pathetic.”
According to licensed marriage and family therapist Winifred M. Reilly, the parenting approach toward adult children should be “hands-off.”
However, she clarified that this doesn’t mean parents are no longer relevant in their children’s lives. Instead, they should act more as “trusted advisers.”
“Instead of, ‘Here’s what I think you should do,’ a better and more respectful move is, ‘Would you like to hear my thoughts on that?’” Reilly told HuffPost in an interview.
Instead of immediately kicking her daughters out, the mom could’ve sat them down and asked what happened. While the two young women aren’t excused for neglecting their sick half-brother, they did deserve a proper dialogue instead of immediate hostility.
Image credits: Curated Lifestyle (not the actual photo)
The woman provided more information by addressing some readers’ responses
Those who sided with her supported her decision to kick them out of her home
But those who faulted her believe “the punishment doesn’t fit the crime”
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What do you think ?
Ellinor 7 months ago
To the YTA's commenter who said that the girls "just didn't wanted to clean puke", the boy is 7. The least they could do was go see him, reassure him, answer to his messages, warn the mother, or just clean it. They ignored a 7 years old child in distress, that's not acceptable. And honestly, the mom was really nice to welcome them in her house and pay for everything after years of badmouthing and disrespecting her husband.
Tabitha 7 months ago
They could have checked on him and helped him to the bathroom if he was feeling nauseous, so he could puke into the toilet instead of all over himself. They weren’t expected to hover over him for two hours, just check on him periodically and be available when needed. Not all day like a parent would do, but for a mere two hours like a babysitter would do—-and in this case, their babysitting pay is free rent. This is all the result of their father poisoning their minds against their mother, stepfather, and stepbrother. So the root of all of this, as well as the full blame for it, lies with the father and no one else. Not even the “witch” stepmother. Daddy raised two bitches just like him, so HE can help them out when Mom rightfully puts them out of her house. Wonder if Daddy and Stepmom have kids the two b****y daughters can also abuse? Or have they already done so, which is why Daddy stopped paying their rent? Without that context, it’s hard to say.
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Susie Elle 7 months ago
Nobody thinks that perhaps an adult conversation needs to be had here?
Lee Gilliland 7 months ago
I don't know how you define "adult" but these two are far from it.
Load More Replies...
Michelle C 7 months ago
If you're in your 20s with no job and living with your parents I don't care if the kid had explosive diarrhea...take care of it! A long time ago when I had to live with my mother, not only was I paying her $150 a week but I also made sure to do chores and help with errands. And the fathers wife might be right, him paying their rent was keeping them from doing what adults do...work and pay bills. Just because you don't get the job you want off the bat doesn't mean you don't go get a job. Work the one you can get until you get the one you want. I've had to work fast food, telemarketing, and other less desirable jobs to make ends meet until I got the ones with better status.
Vinnie 7 months ago (edited)
I find it easier to explain in a job interview why I took a survival job than why I didn't. I told employers at my first permanent job in my town why I had contract work on my resume, "I was new in town, I wasn't going to turn down work."
Load More Replies...
Ellinor 7 months ago
To the YTA's commenter who said that the girls "just didn't wanted to clean puke", the boy is 7. The least they could do was go see him, reassure him, answer to his messages, warn the mother, or just clean it. They ignored a 7 years old child in distress, that's not acceptable. And honestly, the mom was really nice to welcome them in her house and pay for everything after years of badmouthing and disrespecting her husband.
Tabitha 7 months ago
They could have checked on him and helped him to the bathroom if he was feeling nauseous, so he could puke into the toilet instead of all over himself. They weren’t expected to hover over him for two hours, just check on him periodically and be available when needed. Not all day like a parent would do, but for a mere two hours like a babysitter would do—-and in this case, their babysitting pay is free rent. This is all the result of their father poisoning their minds against their mother, stepfather, and stepbrother. So the root of all of this, as well as the full blame for it, lies with the father and no one else. Not even the “witch” stepmother. Daddy raised two bitches just like him, so HE can help them out when Mom rightfully puts them out of her house. Wonder if Daddy and Stepmom have kids the two b****y daughters can also abuse? Or have they already done so, which is why Daddy stopped paying their rent? Without that context, it’s hard to say.
Load More Replies... Susie Elle 7 months ago
Nobody thinks that perhaps an adult conversation needs to be had here?
Lee Gilliland 7 months ago
I don't know how you define "adult" but these two are far from it.
Load More Replies... Michelle C 7 months ago
If you're in your 20s with no job and living with your parents I don't care if the kid had explosive diarrhea...take care of it! A long time ago when I had to live with my mother, not only was I paying her $150 a week but I also made sure to do chores and help with errands. And the fathers wife might be right, him paying their rent was keeping them from doing what adults do...work and pay bills. Just because you don't get the job you want off the bat doesn't mean you don't go get a job. Work the one you can get until you get the one you want. I've had to work fast food, telemarketing, and other less desirable jobs to make ends meet until I got the ones with better status.
Vinnie 7 months ago (edited)
I find it easier to explain in a job interview why I took a survival job than why I didn't. I told employers at my first permanent job in my town why I had contract work on my resume, "I was new in town, I wasn't going to turn down work."
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