Miserum
Well-known member
I've been feeling really agitated again lately, moreso than usual. Two mornings in a row now I've woken up to a brain full of one thought after another after another and can't get my brain to stop. I need to start recording thoughts again and I also need to take a break from talking to my mother. I've been spending a lot of time with her lately because of what I've been needing help doing and I'm pretty sure it's why I've been so on edge lately.
I've realized that I've unfortunately have fallen into the partial trap (path?) of me slowly becoming the parent. Just like her and her mother before, I'm seeing very similar patterns. My mother had to be a parent to her mother at an early age. She didn't have much of a young adulthood because of it. Always was financially supporting her or "rescuing" her in some way or another, from evictions to threats of restraining orders. While my mother doesn't need financial support and hasn't risked breaking any laws or becoming a nuisance, she needs social and emotional support constantly. She hates being alone, she hates not talking to people, she's a natural social butterfly and always likes to have fun. Now that she hasn't had a steady job in over 10 years, and my dad and her haven't really supported each other emotionally in over 15 years, she is always seeking out family to talk to in order to put herself in situations to feel like she's needed. I have to be around when something goes wrong, even if it doesn't involve me. I'm constantly being called to talk about things I have no interest in talking about or listening to. Being out in public with her irritates me to no end anymore, sadly enough. Every time I think something sounds like it'll be good for her to attend to shift her mind elsewhere, it turns into babysitting. She completely loses all focus of her surroundings and as soon as something catches her interest she has to jump on it and check it out. She has no care or disregard for anyone else except herself and it drives me insane. Yesterday she cut off a guy in line at the store - really didn't mean to, but again, she didn't care to take note of her surroundings - and I wound up quickly apologizing to him after he spoke up. The last thing I needed was to see my mother bickering to some guy over something that was her fault to begin with, and then hearing her complain about it for the next half hour.
My brother is also living with her again now too, which does not help. She's constantly calling me up "worried" about him and how "depressed" he is, or complaining about how "lazy" and "ignorant" he is. I know he's depressed, but I have no sympathy honestly, partly because he is a narcissistic jerk. But also because I have been struggling with depression for 15 years, part of which was literally caused by her and my brother, and I have been to therapy twice now and still can't manage to get the help I need. Where the fuck has my sympathy been this whole time? All I got told growing up was to "get over it" and now you've been telling me "You need to [go out and do this thing]." Like thanks mom, I'll get right on that with my social anxiety. I know what I need to do, but what I actually need is some constructive support. Not being told what I should or shouldn't be doing.
It's extremely hard and draining to have this kind of relationship with people that should always be there for you and care about you. It often seems like it's always a one-way street.
I just posted about overthinking on my little thread-diary thing I've got going on elsewhere on the site (be sure to subscribe, and don't forget to smash that like button). Here is the article I posted, which I found useful.
https://www.inc.com/amy-morin/10-signs-you-think-too-much-and-what-you-can-do-about-it.html
I'm going to try the "30 minutes of worrying time block" method they've suggested.
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