My mom and I had this discussion today and we couldn’t agree so we decided to ask here!

My mom and my dad have been divorced for over 20 years, a bad divorce, they ended up in court for 5 years dividing stuff, they basically can’t stand each other now. He affects her mentally in many ways every time she sees him (mostly around my nephew now).

However, she insists on keeping ties with his family, especially this one sister he has. She said they are the same age and have similar interests, she lives in Mexico, so it doesn’t mean as much. She also thinks that because it was not a regular relationship she had with him because they were married and had kids, this is more normal.

The way I see it is she has a hard time moving on even after all this time or doesn’t want to fully let go, even though he affects her the way he does. She actually never moved on, lives alone, never dated anyone else. Now she goes out of her way to add her on social media, she would message her too, initiating the conversation often. To me his family is the extension of him, and I feel like - find different friends, you don’t need to be in touch with her. Maybe it’s also because how I approach breakups for my own life (I’ve never been married though!)

But very interested in your thoughts!!

Thanks! 😊