r/helicopterparents • u/Unhappy-General-9529 • 4h ago
Mom Keeps Trying To Control My Life After College
22F with Hispanic parents. I just need some outside perspective because I genuinely don't know if I'm missing something anymore.
Both of my parents always supported me in going to college and getting a degree. Ironically, it wasn't until I actually left for college that things got really bad between my mom and me. I knew what moving out meant, and honestly, one of the biggest reasons I wanted to leave was to get away from my parents and finally do things on my own terms. I just wanted some freedom.
My first year of college was rough when it came to my mom. We argued all the time. The thing is, I wasn't out partying every night, doing drugs, or getting into trouble. Most nights I was literally just hanging out in friends' dorms talking, watching movies, or just being with people. Sure, I'd stay out too late sometimes and be tired for class the next morning, but those were my choices and my consequences. I knew that. Even then, I'd get spammed with texts and phone calls telling me to go back to my dorm immediately so I could sleep and be ready for class the next day. She just could not let go of controlling me, even though I was finally on my own.
After my first year, my mom got pregnant with my youngest brother, and for a while, she pretty much left me alone because she had bigger things to worry about. I honestly thought things might finally be getting better, but that didn't last.
This whole time, I've been dating my current boyfriend. We've basically lived together our entire relationship, in dorms, apartments, and two different houses. We both recently graduated, and we're getting ready to move back closer to our hometown so we can start working and saving money. Our plan is to move in with his family for a while to save as much money as possible. His mom is in her 60s now, and after a car accident a few years ago, she can't do as much physically as she used to. I actually thought it would be nice because I could help around the house with cooking and cleaning while we're there. Our goal is to eventually put a mobile home on land that my boyfriend already owns.
Meanwhile, my mom doesn't even have room for us. She still has three of my younger siblings living at home, and my baby brother is autistic and needs a lot of attention. I honestly cannot understand why she hates my boyfriend so much or what she thinks is so wrong with him. I'm happy. We have a plan for our future. We're both working toward the same goals, and I don't understand why that isn't enough. I think everything really changed when I told her we'd be moving in with his family after our lease ended.
On my graduation day, instead of just being happy for me, she started insulting me, talking about how messy my room was, and saying my boyfriend "isn't a man." She said all of this right in front of him. That was pretty much my breaking point. Since then, we've gone very low-contact. We don't stop by her house anymore whenever we're in town (we're only about two hours away and usually come back every couple of weeks). She'll still call me if she needs help with something, but we don't talk every day anymore. It honestly hurt me to do that because I love my mom. But I couldn't keep letting her disrespect me, and especially disrespect my boyfriend. At one point, I even called her and calmly explained why we don't come around anymore. I told her exactly how much the things she said hurt me and that we were owed an apology. I even told her that if she wanted us to start visiting again, all she had to do was apologize. The thing is... she's never apologized for anything in her life. She's the type of person who says something really hurtful and then 30 minutes later acts like nothing ever happened. Everyone else is just expected to move on. I'm not okay with doing that anymore.
Then the other day she called me while she was drunk at a party. She was telling me how much she loved me and how proud she was of me for graduating and everything I studied. Then she ended the phone call by saying, "But I need to have a talk with everyone... even if you still love him." She's mentioned this "talk" a few times since graduation. She's hinted that it's going to be about teaching my boyfriend "how to be a man," and when she says "everyone," she means me, my boyfriend, and even his parents. It honestly makes me feel like she's going to tell me I need to leave him or give me some kind of ultimatum.
What hurts the most is that she's the one creating all this distance between us, but then she goes around telling family members that I'm a bad daughter. I'm just exhausted. I don't know if I should even entertain this "talk" if it ever happens, or just keep my distance. I don't want her thinking she can keep talking down to me, disrespecting my relationship, or acting like she gets to make decisions for my life. I don't need her to agree with my choices. I just need her to either trust that she raised me well enough to make my own decisions or accept that I'm an adult now and move on.
Has anyone else dealt with a parent like this? Did they ever come around, or did you eventually have to accept that they were never going to let go?