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Grandparenting

DIL Denied Me Access to 1st and ONLY Grandson!

(42 Posts)
5fatkittenz Wed 02-Jun-21 21:07:00

My first grandchild will be a year old in July and I have seen him once at 2 months.

When I went for a visit, my daughter in law spent 10 minutes telling me what a rotten person I was and how she hated me and didn't want me around her son (All this while holding the baby!)

This is my son's partner choice and never once I have spoken out against her.I believe my son has told her all the negative stuff that happened to him as a child and while I can't change that,I also believe that he should work on letting go of his past.

My son and i got along great before she was pregnant and he would come over here to stay for a few days and rant on about how "needy" and "clingy" his partner was and said he felt he needed to break up with her,then voila,shes pregnant.

In any case,he was sitting beside her and said nothing as she went on this mini rant decimating me to tears.

I left that day and heard from my son once in December of last year telling me how much he missed his family etc.

My DIL has also denied access to my daughters to see the baby as well,so it's just not me she hates.

I am at my wit's end and they have both blocked me from contacting them in any way.They live 20 minutes away.

I am heartbroken, not only for the loss of my first and only grandson but also for the loss of my son.

Btw I have only previously met my DIL three times and never once did she talk to me more than a few sentences and so doesn't know me at all!

This has devastated me and I contemplated suicide but then got into therapy.I am grieving a living death of two people I LOVE

Bibbity Thu 03-Jun-21 19:51:48

Namsnanny

What a ridiculous post.

The Op has purposely glanced over potential trauma that her son has had to suffer that could be the very reason these two adults are protecting their child from her yet all we hear about is the pity party and painting the DIL as the villain.

Doodledog Fri 04-Jun-21 11:31:28

That aspect of the post could be discussed without the OP having to disclose the nature of the issues between herself and her son, though.

It may be true that the situation needs to be viewed in the light of the fact that issues exist (which it has been, in a number of posts), but it seems a bit salacious to ask for the details.

Chestnut Fri 04-Jun-21 15:30:07

Bibbity The Op has purposely glanced over potential trauma that her son has had to suffer that could be the very reason these two adults are protecting their child from her yet all we hear about is the pity party and painting the DIL as the villain.
I don't think anyone thinks she is a villain. She is going by what her husband told her and appears to be protecting her child from what she perceives as negative influences.
Whatever happened in the past the OP is clearly suffering by not having contact with her son and grandchild. Even if she is the cause of past trauma she may be regretful and wishing to make amends.
Neither woman is being vilified here, just trying to understand where they are both coming from.

M0nica Fri 04-Jun-21 16:05:56

I am sorry I read this OP as being very self centred, which may tell us something about what went before.

The title alone, with 'only' in caps and accusing her DiL of denying her access, as if she had the right to it and someone was denying her her rights, smacks of someone who expects to get everything her way all the time.

We have many estrangement threads and some are really sad, but this one with its sense of entitlment would have me running for the hills if I was the DiL

Chestnut Fri 04-Jun-21 16:41:04

M0nica

I am sorry I read this OP as being very self centred, which may tell us something about what went before.

The title alone, with 'only' in caps and accusing her DiL of denying her access, as if she had the right to it and someone was denying her her rights, smacks of someone who expects to get everything her way all the time.

We have many estrangement threads and some are really sad, but this one with its sense of entitlment would have me running for the hills if I was the DiL

I have re-read the OP and I see no accusations or sense of entitlement so I think you're being very unfair to say that. She has expressed huge sorrow and thoughts of suicide and you are saying things which will only make her feel worse.

Some of these threads run for much too long and outstay their usefulness when people start getting nasty instead of helpful.

M0nica Fri 04-Jun-21 16:58:11

chestnut I can only write about the impression the OP made on me and I have been very careful to make this clear throughout my post. I have also explained what in the post made me think like that. I have not accuse the OP of anything, nor I am being nasty. If the OP returns, she may like to comment on what she said, reword it or explain it.

Rereading the thread, I am not the only one to feel ambivalent about the OP, and it is in fact quite a short thread, barely one and a half pages.

I have previously contributed to this thread, a post that was considered helpful

Summerlove Fri 04-Jun-21 19:15:54

I read it the same way you did MOnica

PaperMonster Fri 04-Jun-21 20:08:31

Yup, there’s something amiss here and it’s neither the son or the daughter in law.

Smileless2012 Fri 04-Jun-21 20:34:13

It may be that the OP's son and d.i.l. feel they need to protect their child from her however, that doesn't explain why her son has now estranged her and why his sisters have also been cut out.

The OP and her son were in regular contact, he stayed with her and spoke of his unhappiness with his relationship, to the point that he was thinking of ending the relationship, but that changed when she became pregnant.

There is indeed "something amiss here" PaperMonster when a son, in spite of what may or may not have occurred during his childhood, had remained in a relationship with his mother, for him to then estrange her with no explanation.

I agree with your post Chestnut and have found some of the responses to the OP who has had thoughts of suicide unnecessarily cruel and judgemental.

MawBe Fri 04-Jun-21 20:46:52

Just out of interest - would it have=made any indifference at all if this had not been your 1st and ONLY grandson ?
(Just wondering why the shouty capitals)

MawBe Fri 04-Jun-21 20:48:49

Predictive text - difference of course ? (Apologies )

Bibbity Fri 04-Jun-21 20:50:38

That happened with my husband. They usually A. Don’t know how bad it was as they don’t know any different.
Or B. Don’t actually know there is a genuine way out because of conditioning.

My husband once told his mother he would never ever stop her seeing his future children like his brother had.

He cut her out 4 years ago. She’s never met our youngest.
When a person becomes a parent a lot of things are put into perspective. And we start thinking back to our childhoods through new eyes.

Chestnut Fri 04-Jun-21 23:06:00

Bibbity When a person becomes a parent a lot of things are put into perspective. And we start thinking back to our childhoods through new eyes.
Agreed. And when a person becomes a grandparent they too see things differently. And maybe see their own attempts at parenthood through new eyes. This is the path we travel as we go through life, hopefully learning all the way.

nanna8 Tue 08-Jun-21 01:55:28

There’s nothing to be said, really, except just hope things improve as the years go by. We don’t know the full situation ,nor should we on a forum like this but it is a sad thing that they cannot at least have minimal contact with you.

buddy1954 Mon 21-Jun-21 18:26:34

I'm sorry to hear this has happened to you. Unfortunately the same thing happened to me. We accepted her into the family with open arms and my son and daughter used to go out together with their partners and we all got along great. But then my daughter noticed a change in her and eventually my daughter stopped going out with them. She turned very nasty and started picking up on everything my daughter would say or do which turned my son against his sister. We carried on as normal until she got pregnant and for some reason she turned against me. I was always very close to my son and I think she got jealous. She did exactly the same as she did with my daughter. When she had the baby she wouldn't let me go to the hospital to see her and she was my first GC and I was so excited but I respected her decision. Anyway I had to wait until she said I could see her. After that things just got worse. She would constantly make remarks to me and I would always cry after a visit. To cut a very long story short. I eventually gave up as I was just getting too upset by her. My husband continued to visit them so I still got to see pictures of my gd and I have had to be grateful for that. I have not seen her now for 4 years and not spoken to my son either but my husband still keeps contact and that's even a struggle now. I believe he will get fed up too as it's very one-sided. She has broken my heart and my family. She's a very nasty women. The only good thing about it is my son is happy with her and seems oblivious to what she has done. As long as he is happy that's all I can wish for. So my advice to you is accept that you are not going to see your GS and get on with your life and be there for your son if he ever needs you.

whitepeonies44 Mon 21-Jun-21 21:13:12

I believe my son has told her all the negative stuff that happened to him as a child and while I can't change that,I also believe that he should work on letting go of his past.

Your DS clearly feel strongly about his childhood. It’s very self-centred of you to diminish his feelings saying he needs to let go of his past. It’s your DIL and your DS’s right to decide who can be around their child, therefore your title of this post is a bit dramatic.

Btw I have only previously met my DIL three times and never once did she talk to me more than a few sentences and so doesn't know me at all!

Your DIL is basing her opinion on you solely on what your DS told her. Details of what happened during his childhood are not neccessary for this forum but have you written them a letter or made any attempt or effort to try and make peace with your son? Did you take accountability for your actions if you are the reason for these issues? It seems that you have unresolved issues with your DS and it has trickled and affected your DIL.

I think while it is so easy to jump on the “I hate DIL” bandwagon, handling this with more rational thought and pinpointing the exact cause might help your healing process and help you figure out the best steps to repair the relationships if that’s what you want to do.

I have an MIL who is self centred and oblivious to any wrongdoing that she has done to my DH or her daughter during their childhood. She is already estranged from her daughter. My DH has told me about all the negatives that occurred during his childhood due to her and while I am shocked, it’s not my place to say anything about it. But it is my place to make sure that her negative traits and behaviour are not done around my children. And knowing what I know, it has definitely put me into protective mode with my MIL. DH and MIL are not close but we allow her to see our daughter. I respect my DH’s choices and as long as MIL is respectful and behaves, we will support MIL visits. I am civil to her but I am also keeping a watchful eye over her.