Do the people that you live with bring you down?

I live with my elderly mum, and she is forever wearing me down by leaning solely on me for her psychological/ emotional support. She is forever moaning to me about what’s gone wrong with her day, about her everyday problems, what she thinks other people think of her etc... It got to the point where it clinically depresses me, and turns what was an anxiety free day into a very bad one.

I guess in other words she completely and utterly helps to maintain the social anxiety in me!

In the past I tried explaining this to her, and she reacts like a baby and throws a tantrum, saying that all she’s got in her life is me. It makes me feel completely and utterly trapped.

Not only this, but to the present day, she has constantly demonstrated a complete and utter lack of faith in my abilities/ knowledge. I often jokingly think to myself that if I told her that the sky was blue, she wouldn’t believe me and would feel compelled to go outside and check for herself. However if someone else told her that the sky was blue……

Can anyone relate to this?

is a bit of a difficult situation
think need to have look where your going in life and maybe make some changes while still keeping your mum involved but not so much so...maybe living nearby or something so can live your life more

Your her crutch. She relies on you to reinforce her warped view of the world, and whenever you deviate, she uses emotional blackmail to make you feel guilty and neglectful. That's not healthy. Of course, you can't throw your dear old mother to the wolves, so what are you going to do? I don't envy your situation.

This is a text-book case of co-dependency. You really need to get out of his situation, for the sake of you and your mother. It might be painful at first, but the benefits of independence and self-esteem outweigh them by a mile.

I think my dad can be overly sensitive about things. To the point that when I'm with him I feel constantly on edge, and I find myself walking around being angry. Always with him if there's nothing wrong, he's sure to make a problem. But maybe I just need more discipline in my life?

Anubis said:

This is a text-book case of co-dependency. You really need to get out of his situation, for the sake of you and your mother. It might be painful at first, but the benefits of independence and self-esteem outweigh them by a mile.

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Right on the money!