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So the question, what is the best way for me to communicate with her so she treats me with respect and I don’t say anything wrong at the same time?
Oh gosh, like that question breaks my heart because there’s no way to do that. There’s no way to make sure that she treats you with respect. That’s on her, and you don’t have control over that. And that’s hard because I know you want it to be positive experiences between you and her son and all of you together. And unfortunately you don’t have control over whether she respects you or not. You can respond in 110% the best way possible. And she still may not treat you with respect. So, I think the important thing to do in all these situations is to be true to yourself. To look at the situation and say what, regardless of how she behaves, what feels like the right thing for me to do, and I’m going to do that because I’m building my own self-respect and knowing that what I’m doing is right, no matter what anybody else thinks. And when you do it from that perspective and from loving yourself, it’s easier to just say; That’s fine, she doesn’t have to respect me. I still know that I’m doing my best and I love her son and I want what’s best for him. I hope that someday, that she’ll be able to see that.
You may always say something wrong in her mind. Remember, she’s coming from her issues. You’re coming from your background. It is what it is. And I think that the expectation that you don’t see anything wrong and is unreasonable for you. It will hurt you to have to sensor yourself with the purpose of making her happy versus this feels right to me.