livingforme
Bronze
Reged: 02/07/08
Posts: 32
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<<< Parallel Parenting, my rules at my house and their rules at their house is the best that you can hope for. Uncoordinated because niceness = weakness. Think being circled by starving wolves, the narcissist feeds the same way. >>>
"Parallel Parenting" - that's a good phrase. And it is exactly how things are - I'm a parent with rules at my house. When we were married he was never a parent - just a best buddy to the kids. But now that he has the new gf, he is starting to lay down rules at his house - and they are inconsistent rules. Apparently his stern response is "The law of sibling unequality is the rule here."
What's really, really hard is I have an adult daughter with serious, chronic mental illness and consistency and structure are extremely important for her. But there is little consistency - so she's spiraling downwards. Her counselor said we need consistency between the households - with my ex, that only means his way.
This sucks.
(By the way, I fully understand that few people have full-blown NPD, and my ex probably doesn't - but he has very strong narcissistic behaviors and probably has 4-5 of the characteristics - the biggest being his lack of empathy - he is amazingly cold and emotionless.)
Thankfully, I'm a strong person and just keep on plugging away, dealing with all this stuff.
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mommy04
New
Reged: 07/12/08
Posts: 8
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this was an intersting thread. My x was diagnosed with everything from bi polar to major depressive disorder. My best guess is borderline. He can be very verbaly abusive and mean. He did hit and push me around in the marrage. Now I am 4 years later in a very stable relationship with a wonderful man. Between the two of us we have 4 kids. My 11 year old will not see her dad. He lives out of state and she refuses to get on a plane. My 13 year old is ADD and very much has the emotional ablity of a 9 year old. The last year and I think in response to my upcoming marrage he has told her he is going to get custody of her. He has visitation and I allowed him to select some time this summer after summer school. He only bought her a one way ticket. He tells me that he is going to buy the return ticket and said he would put it in an email to confirm but he has no money. He has never paid support. I am scared to let her go without a return ticket. I don't know my rights if he keeps her.
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andreasolitaria
Bronze
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 47
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Hi everybody... First of all, please excuse my english bc i am spanish... i will try to write as good as posible... I had divorced from my 18 years husband a year ago, and after 5 years going forward and reconciliating until nothing can save our marriage. My counselor, from the beggining of the crisis in my marriage, had always said me my ex is narcissist bc his behavior and selfish way of thinking about everything, speciallly our relationship. I can say now he really hit my self steem and still now he continue to do that but now i dont let him or at least i ask him to shut up when he began to attack me, now because my parenting skills. We both have 3 kids, 8, 15 and 16 years old. And now, my 16 daughter is suffering what i had siffered for many years in other way: a narcissist father. He has a same gf since last december (until then he had had others 3 different gf but never introduce them to my kids in a formal way) and he wants my kids to accept her as a part of the family,letting them to her house (she has two kids), eating all together like a familly, inviting her to a travel he had planned with my kids on summer, although he introduce her to my kids on may. My oldest Daughter is receiving the hard part bc she is the only one who talks sincerely to his father... my other daughter is 8, too little to talk or understand, and my son try to be appart, not looking for troubles also he had demanded him more attention some times. The thing is oldest daughter doesnt speak at all to his father right now, she said she feel frustrated bc his behavior, she told me she doesnt recognize his father... this bc she had had two hard fights with him always bc his gf. He called me many times asking me for help... crying like a victim bc he loves her daughter, etc, i had helped him,they reconciliate, talk, and then he again began to act in a selfish way, without thinking a little in her adolescent daughter heart. So i asked him to maintain me appart and that he will have to resolve his relation problem with my daughter alone... I had helped him although he always began conversations telling me "you are doing a lot of hurt to your kids"... afforttunately right now i am a lot stronger and i dont accept this kind of games with my self steem... i am a 20 points mother... my children always count on me, they are always in first place for me so... he can say anything just to feel better himself, but he knows that not true... My daughter doesnt want to go to that travel... she prefered to lose knowing new countries, buyng clothes, just bc she is so angry with his father... i let her to counselor, but the last date the counselor said she is so closed, angry and she doesnt wants to apologyze him... she say she doesnt beleive in his words any more... This is so difficult, i can feel her really sad, depress, bc i know she loves her dad. Each time i try to talk to her about apologyzing him or trying to get better and that accepting his father gf is a time set, she get even moro angry with me... Right now the other 2 kids are in dad home bc he arrived from a travel (with the gf and the two kids of her. My children doesnt know this). My oldest daughter is here, with me, and he is acting like she really doesnt exist although i have to accept he try to call her from the travel and she didnt want to talk with him... In the past years i was the one who dissapoint my ex bc telling him not to spend too much in travels, to think in buying a home, and all of that... now is my daughter who is telling him "hey, please... we need more time with you, i need for more attention from you" and bc this doesnt fit with his plans, he is yelling her each time... This is so difficult... i cant detach finally from him... i can cut the rope from him bc all this issues with my children.. my little D is suffering a lot when he let her to his gf home, bc the daughter of her treat my little children bad!! About my son, he is so difficult bc he doesnt like to talk at all... he try to avoid all the conversations, he try not to see any mistake in him or in me... So, yes... divorcing a narcissist is a roller coaster still... as when we were marriage and i was trying to get on with our relationship... now is harder bc i live with my kids and i suffer with them their deceptions, their scare, theis frustration...
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asadmom
New
Reged: 05/07/08
Posts: 21
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Have dealt with many of these same issues for years. When my kids were little they only saw Dad as fun. It wasn't until they were teenagers that they got a real dose of a selfish, self absorbed man. I never had to tell them, they figured it all out on their own. Now when he does something harmful, I just say," I am so sorry that he is not or can not be the father you wish he was. You have to learn to accept and love him for who he is. " I also repeat this a lot, "on the day you were conceived and the day you were born, you were wanted and loved." My other is," he is your father, you need to work it out for yourself if not for him." It seems to help them.
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andreasolitaria
Bronze
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 47
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Dear Sad Mom: Thanks for your words, i hope can help me and help all the friends here thar are suffering bc the same issue: selfish!!... I had said that words, specially the ones who relate with loving her father as he is... and that this effort is for her mainly and not for him... I hope some day this words will produce the effect i want to see in my daughter. An hour ago i had a sad conversation (many yellings from her part) just bc i asked her to speak with him, to try fixing the relation with his father... And she was so dissapointed with me, she feel i beleive more in his father, in what he say is the cause of what is happening, and no... i beleive her but also i am tired just receiving phone calls after phone calls from his father saying me he is desperate and doesnt know what to do to resolve the issue, although he lies all the problem, the causes, in his daughter and nothing with him.... and even more, telling me i am acting bad just permiting her not to talk him, that i am causing her a big damage, etc etc etc. So, again, thanks... i really hope this words i had said many times some day cause the effects i want on my child: she in peace and feeling ok, not depress, not sad, bc his dad.
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sandij15
Platinum
 
Reged: 09/13/06
Posts: 1981
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I haven't logged on for a long time, but when I seen your post my heart went out to you. I have been divorced for almost three years now. I have sole custody of my children, one of them now an adult. My children also chose not to see their father because of the things he said and did. My ex fits many of the narcissistic tendencies and has been diagnosed with OCD. Anyway, my children still do not have a relationship with their father. They have tried to talk with him about their feelings regarding the divorce, his treatment of all of us during the process and after and also his marriage to the then 18 year-old girl (who tried to be with our oldest son (he was 18 as well) at the same time she was seeing my then husband). Only to be told things such as "I don't live my life for you." and "It's about my happiness, I have a right to be happy".
Anyway, my heart goes out to you and your children, it has been a difficult journey for my children and me. They are now 21, 17 and 12. It has been very much the rollercoaster. My children actually coped with the whole thing much better than I did. Life is better than it was and it has steadily gotten better each passing year.
Words of advice.... Do not try to fix the relationship between your ex and your children, I tried because I truly believed they needed that relationship and felt bad for my ex that he didn't get to see his children. But time and time again, he proved by his actions and his words that he was more interested in himself than he was in having a relationship with them. I was the last one to see him for who and what he really became.
Be responsible for your relationship with your children. Let him be responsible for his.
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