It’s easy to get along with others when everything is going well. After all, there’s nothing to worry about and nothing to test anyone’s patience. It’s when things get hard that people show their true colors.
One woman saw this firsthand when her partner fell into a coma. She was touched that his entire family showed up to support him, until they moved into her apartment and started treating her horribly. She ended up leaving her own home just to get away from them.
Now that her partner is awake, they’re acting nice again, and everyone expects her to simply move on.
When the woman’s partner fell into a coma, his family made her life hell
Image credits: Arlessa art / Magnific (not the actual photo)
But now that he’s awake, they’re acting like nothing happened and expect her to simply move on
Image credits: Magnific (not the actual photo)
Image credits: skawee / Magnific (not the actual photo)
Image credits: katemangostar / Magnific (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Comfortable-Front130
It’s hard when your in-laws don’t treat you well
As the saying goes, when you marry someone, you don’t just marry that person. You marry their family too. And it doesn’t really matter if you’ve actually tied the knot or are just dating. At one point or another, their family becomes part of the picture. If you don’t get along with them, it can make your whole life so much more stressful.
In this case, the woman saw exactly how her partner’s family felt about her the moment he wasn’t around to notice. His mom decided to sleep in the bed with her. His sister took his phone. The family also demanded that the woman cook and clean for everyone.
They called her names in her own kitchen and threatened to put her in her place when she asked for basic respect. She ended up leaving her apartment for an Airbnb because she didn’t feel safe in her own home. Who behaves like that toward someone whose partner is fighting for his life?
The sad reality is she’s far from alone in clashing with her in-laws. A 2024 Newsweek survey of 1,000 Americans found that people commonly butt heads with their partner’s family over things like lifestyle choices (22%) and disagreements involving their partner (21%).
Research also suggests that daughters-in-law are especially likely to clash with their mother-in-law, which lines up perfectly with what this woman went through, since her partner’s mom was one of the main sources of the drama.
And as if that weren’t enough, it wasn’t just her in-laws treating her badly. When she brought it up with her partner, he brushed it off and said they didn’t mean it because everyone was under a lot of stress. Now he’s telling her to leave the past in the past and wants them all to spend holidays together like nothing happened.
Image credits: The Yuri Arcurs Collection / Magnific (not the actual photo)
It’s even harder when your partner refuses to do anything about it
According to Brides, that’s a serious red flag. “If your partner’s family has a more important voice in your relationship than you do, that is a recipe for disaster,” certified dating and relationship coach Adelle Kelleher told the outlet.
At the very least, it would’ve been nice if her partner stood up for her and had a real conversation with his family about how they treated her, or set some boundaries so it wouldn’t happen again. But he didn’t.
That kind of silence from a partner can do real damage. As Dr. Margo Lewis-Jah, a licensed psychotherapist and board-certified sexologist, told Brides, when your partner fails to put your needs first, you can end up feeling unsupported and neglected.
Naturally, the woman can keep having those conversations with her partner and try to make him and his family understand how she really feels. Hopefully, that would be enough to shift things around. But if nothing changes and the tension only keeps escalating, that’s a big sign she should seriously reconsider the relationship.
So far, things aren’t looking great for this couple. What do you think this woman should do? Should she break things off, or is there a way to work through this together? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Readers said the woman shouldn’t brush her feelings aside, and many suggested counseling or leaving if her partner keeps refusing to take her seriously
