My mum is going through a living hell. For over a year now, my single parent sister and her child have lived with her. My mother cannot cope with her but my sister will not leave as she claims she cannot afford to live on her own (she could). My mother keeps having outbursts because she is so frustrated with my sister's behaviour towards her. Almost every day my sister winds my mother up and and then my mother says she cannot stop herself from flying off the handle and screaming at her.
Have you asked your your sister to leave? Does she have options?
How can you help..?
Right. Not very easily.
Have you *considered* - just considered, I'm not saying rush in there - contacting Social Services?
Does your mother have any support from/contact with health or social care teams? having lived alone before, it wouldn't be unusual.
The thing is. Somebody with some clout needs to spell out to your sister that it is not acceptable or sustainable for an 80 year old lady with an uncomfortable chronic health problem to be subjected to the stress of daily conflict; and that there is a question mark over whether this might even constitute abuse of a vulnerable person.
At the same time, it is not ideal - I wouldn't say not acceptable - for a child to be living with that much uncertainty and conflict around, and with that many changes of primary carer from day to day.
So that when you add it all up, what you want is a good social worker with plenty of wide-ranging experience of working with families to look at the whole picture.
Everybody involved deserves support (especially your mum, but I do feel for your sister and your nephew too). At the moment, although you and your brother are trying to move mountains, nobody is getting quite what they need.
Threats are really not going to help, obviously; but social services might have ideas other people wouldn't know about. So - what are they like round your area? Have you ever had anything to do with them?
Your sister needs to work full time. This should not be your mom’s problem, nor your problem. She can get out. Four times going back home is a bit much. Does she overspend foolishly? Is she saving enough money?
Could you send me a private message and tell me which local authority your mother's house comes under? Would you mind doing that? You just click on the avatar and it'll take you to my profile page.
If she can’t manage at home, how will she manage out of your mom’s home? She can do better. She just doesn’t want to.
She torments your mom. That is upsetting to you. The child is wittinessing the mayhem. Not healthy for him. Does she feel entitled or is she not capable of being responsible due to mental illness?
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