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Woman Lets 10 Years Of Repressed Anger Loose On MIL After A New Woman Joins The Family
Young woman expressing intense anger, illustrating repressed rage and emotional outburst related to MIL conflict.

Woman Lets 10 Years Of Repressed Anger Loose On MIL After A New Woman Joins The Family

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There’s only so much mistreatment someone can take before they either break down or explode with rage. And when the negativity is coming from your in-laws, some believe it’s best to grin and bear it in the name of keeping the peace.

That’s exactly what one woman did, despite being taunted for a decade. It took just one triggering remark about her difficult childhood recently, to unleash ten years of pent-up rage on her mother-in-law. The woman says something inside her snapped and she could not hold back everything she’d always wanted to say.

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    She never had a family growing up so when she got married, she was excited to finally gain a set of parents

    A woman gently touching a man's hair in a cozy room, illustrating repressed rage and tension with MIL.

    Image credits: freepik (not the actual photo)

    But she’s received 10 years of mistreatment from them, and when she finally snapped, it wasn’t pretty

    Text about a woman reflecting on 10 years of repressed rage at her mother-in-law in a family relationship context.

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    Text excerpt about a first meeting with a mother-in-law involving cultural connection and emotional overwhelm.

    Text about learning family culture and cooking to connect with mother-in-law after years of repressed rage release.

    Family gathered outdoors for a meal, depicting tension and emotions related to repressed rage at MIL in a casual setting.

    Image credits: RejwanX / freepik (not the actual photo)

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    Text excerpt describing mistreatment and repressed rage involving MIL, expressing emotional conflict and family tension.

    Text excerpt describing repressed rage and conflict involving a narcissistic mother-in-law causing emotional distress.

    Text excerpt from a post discussing 10 years of repressed rage and conflict with mother-in-law (MIL).

    Person expressing repressed rage at MIL, sharing emotional story about family tension and strained relationships.

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    Text excerpt describing a tense family moment involving repressed rage at MIL and a confrontation on the same street.

    Angry young woman expressing intense frustration outdoors, illustrating repressed rage at mother-in-law conflict.

    Image credits: kues1 / freepik (not the actual photo)

    Alt text: Person expressing repressed rage and anger towards MIL after 10 years, describing an emotional outburst.

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    Text about a person expressing repressed rage at their mother-in-law after a family conflict involving jealousy.

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    Alt text: Text expressing doubt about being the a**hole for releasing 10 years of repressed rage at mother-in-law conflict

    Image credits: Aleakielou

    “She left crying”: the woman gave some more info when prompted

    Text exchange discussing classist attitudes and repressed rage toward mother-in-law in an intense family conflict.

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    Screenshot of an online discussion about dealing with repressed rage towards a mother-in-law in a community forum.

    Reddit conversation showing a user discussing repressed rage at their MIL and seeking advice on family acceptance.

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    Reddit conversation showing a user discussing 10 years of repressed rage at their MIL and relationship challenges.

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    Reddit comments discussing repressed rage and conflict with mother-in-law in a heated family support situation.

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    Reddit comments discussing repressed rage and relationship issues with mother-in-law after years of tension nearby.

    Holding in anger can harm us more than we might realize, and here’s why

    Some people let rip when they’re angry while others hold it in. Then there are those who have learned how to manage their emotions and deal with their anger effectively.

    Experts warn that repressing anger can have some very serious consequences, including the risk of depression, anxiety and even physical illness.

    Research has shown that bottling up anger can cause physical strain on our bodies. “Holding back anger creates inner tension, which can then cause a wide range of psychosomatic ailments, such as indigestion, chronic pain, chronic fatigue, frequent migraines and even cancer,” reveals the Eggshell Therapy and Coaching site.

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    It credits the College of Nursing, University of Tennessee with reporting that “there is evidence to show that suppressed anger can be a precursor to the development of cancer, and it contributes to cancer progression after the diagnosis.”

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    Anger shoudn’t be confused with aggression or violence. “When anger emerges, there are many different paths we can take in our reactions, and aggression is only one of them,” explains the therapy site. “With practice, a highly sensitive person can learn to express their needs and frustration healthily and gracefully without resorting to outbursts and violence.”

    Woman expressing intense anger and frustration, capturing the emotion of repressed rage toward her MIL.

    Image credits: Pablo Merchán Montes / Unsplash (not the actual photo)

    According to Eggshell’s experts, repressed anger usually stems from childhood trauma or social conditioning. Someone with repressed anger might never have learned hot to properly manage their emotions when they were younger. It’s possible that they were silenced, shamed, or even punished for expressing anger in their early years.

    They warn that suppressing an emotion does not mean it will disappear. “As anger repression is a habit, it may take some time to undo the ongoing pattern of repression,” notes the site.

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    The first step is to understand that anger is not a bad thing. “You may consciously learn about the function and benefits of anger, then set an intention to befriend it. Then, little by little, you can experiment with widening your window of tolerance towards anger,” advise the experts.

    They add that in the beginning, it helps to sit, breathe, and feel whatever you’re feeling for a few minutes, even if it’s unpleasant.

    “Then, you incrementally lengthen how long you can tolerate feeling anger without cutting off, dissociating or going into denial,” suggests Eggshell’s team.

    They also advise doing activities like drawing, journaling, and writing letters (which you don’t have to send) as a way to help deal with anger. And if it works for you, you could choose to scream or punch a pillow as a way to release pent-up energy without hurting others.

    Many netizens rushed to support the daughter-in-law

    Screenshot of a Reddit comment discussing repressed rage and toxic relationships involving MIL and family dynamics.

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    Comment on a forum post about repressed rage at MIL, expressing unfair treatment and lack of support.

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    But not everyone took her side

    Screenshot of a Reddit comment discussing repressed rage and advice related to exploding 10 years of repressed rage at MIL.

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    Screenshot of an online discussion about exploding 10 years of repressed rage at MIL and advice on handling anger respectfully.

    In an update, she said that her husband had apologized but it didn’t end there

    Text-based update about discussing 10 years of repressed rage with MIL and seeking change in family dynamics.

    Text message expressing feelings and plans for couples counseling after exploding 10 years of repressed rage at MIL.

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    “Life has changed”: the woman revealed that they’d moved and things were different now

    Reddit conversation discussing 10 years of repressed rage at MIL and the impact on family relationships and boundaries.

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    Robyn Smith

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    Robyn Smith

    Robyn Smith

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

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    Mantas Kačerauskas

    Mantas Kačerauskas

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    Mantas Kačerauskas

    Mantas Kačerauskas

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    What do you think ?
    Ali
    Community Member
    7 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I also married in to a Greek family. My SIL constantly digs, FIL has constant negative comments which he laughs at my over sensitive nature when I bite. DH becomes, in my opinion, a pig when with them for long. Despite the fact I seak a decent level of greek, they insult me when I'm sitting right there like it doesn't count because I can't understand. As bad as this sounds, as I lived in Greece for a long time, I have a lot of greek friends, and most families seem to have similar stories (I'm around 50, so hope later generations will do better). There is always someone to vent to who understands. In my family it's SIL who is the nightmare, but I do have great relationships with his extended family and have a great and large family on my side too.

    Crystalwitch60
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Time to shine that spine lovely and put your foot down , given your age , u can always blame the menopause it comes in very handy , I’m 60 ,n been thru that , n even tho I found it a piece of cake , loads don’t , so even if your not there yet THEY DONT KNOW THAT HEHEHE. Don’t put up with it a min longer xx

    Load More Replies...
    moggiemoo
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd have lasted 10 minutes before I said something or, more likely, punched somebody. Insult me all you want but be aware, there will be consequences.

    Lee Gilliland
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why in the world do families inflict this kind of treatment upon women and expect us to accept it? Are we masochistis?

    Kathrin Pukowsky
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Abúsers do this because they keep getting away with it. The victims accept it because they believe even the smallest crumb of affection is worth the suffering. There are two equally unhealthy behaviour patterns colliding.

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
    Ali
    Community Member
    7 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I also married in to a Greek family. My SIL constantly digs, FIL has constant negative comments which he laughs at my over sensitive nature when I bite. DH becomes, in my opinion, a pig when with them for long. Despite the fact I seak a decent level of greek, they insult me when I'm sitting right there like it doesn't count because I can't understand. As bad as this sounds, as I lived in Greece for a long time, I have a lot of greek friends, and most families seem to have similar stories (I'm around 50, so hope later generations will do better). There is always someone to vent to who understands. In my family it's SIL who is the nightmare, but I do have great relationships with his extended family and have a great and large family on my side too.

    Crystalwitch60
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Time to shine that spine lovely and put your foot down , given your age , u can always blame the menopause it comes in very handy , I’m 60 ,n been thru that , n even tho I found it a piece of cake , loads don’t , so even if your not there yet THEY DONT KNOW THAT HEHEHE. Don’t put up with it a min longer xx

    Load More Replies...
    moggiemoo
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd have lasted 10 minutes before I said something or, more likely, punched somebody. Insult me all you want but be aware, there will be consequences.

    Lee Gilliland
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why in the world do families inflict this kind of treatment upon women and expect us to accept it? Are we masochistis?

    Kathrin Pukowsky
    Community Member
    5 hours ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Abúsers do this because they keep getting away with it. The victims accept it because they believe even the smallest crumb of affection is worth the suffering. There are two equally unhealthy behaviour patterns colliding.

    Load More Replies...
    Load More Comments
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