Parents worry about son in abusive marriage.
Dear Amy: Our son married a girl who is emotionally abusive. She has one child from a previous relationship and they now have a child together.
She constantly threatens our son with divorce. She shows no restraint when it comes to yelling at him and the kids in front of us.
She has cut us off several times for things she perceived that we have no recollection of happening. We end up apologizing, just so we can have a relationship, even though her accusation is unfounded.
She limits our son seeing us. Apparently, she tracks where he is by his cellphone, and if he’s at our house, after about 10 minutes she’s railing on him to come home.
Our son doesn’t confront her because he wants an intact family for his children. He also says she’ll make his life miserable.
He has an executive-level job, and they live a very nice lifestyle. He doesn’t complain to us often, but when he does, our hearts break.
We never drop in on them because we were told that she doesn’t like that. She has a lot of rules. But, when she needs a favor she will ask us to babysit, which we happily do. There are times when she is very nice to us.
Do you have any advice on how to keep the relationship with her going, so that she doesn’t punish us by withdrawing our grandchildren?
— Sad Grandparents
Dear Sad: By your account, your son is being isolated and controlled by his abusive wife. She also controls you, using contact with your grandchildren as a way to keep you in line.
Don’t let your daughter-in-law use the kids as a weapon. This means that you will need to face the possibility of not seeing them for a time.
If she berates your son or her children in your presence, say to her, “Stop it, please.” Confront her and say, “We're not going to stay here and witness this. We’re leaving.”
If she refuses to let you see the children, maintain a neutral attitude: “That’s too bad; we’re sorry to hear that. If you change your mind or ever need a hand, let us know. We’re always available.”
Privately, you should tell your son that he is in an abusive marriage and that you hope he will exit (with his child). Offer him tons of support, encouragement and practical help to leave when he is ready, but accept that he may choose to stay.