Releasing the past in order to find myself

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Shaken but not Stirred

I'm shaking and crying and upset as I write this.  Fucking narcs.

My NM called today.  I let it go to voice mail.  I waited to listen to it.  I assumed she was calling to see how I was feeling.  Nope.  Her voice was shaky and it was clear something was wrong.  So, I called her back.

Her story was that my sister had called.  Her boyfriend was moving out.  There was drama and chaos on the phone.  And then NSis comes out with the fact that the follow up test for her cancer were wrong.  The lab had called and they had "made a mistake".  And she was going to have surgery to remove her uterus on Thursday.   Apparently,  the boyfriend just found out about this today too.  Hard not to miss that coincidence.  NM was heading home to make airline reservations, but Nsis was refusing to have her come out.  NSis said that if NM came our for the surgery she wouldn't answer the phone.  NM is destraught and crying.  She says that NSis is trying to protect everyone and do things on her own and didn't want to burden anyone.  But NM doesn't think NSis should do this on her own.  Nm says she's having her own health problems.  I ask "like what".  NM says, oh, well, like my blood pressure (this has been an issue of months now).  And her doctor put her on an antidepressant and she was at the hospital with an anxiety attack.  And she dissolves into tears again.  I believe NM's emotion.  I do think she's upset.  But it's all weirdly placed emotion.  NM asks me if I think she should call my dad.  Funny, because she's never asked my permission before.  NM becomes confusing to talk to and I offer to call my dad (who also hasn't spoken to my sister as she's been verbally assaulting him lately).   NM initially refuses but then thanks me for being willing to call him as she gets off the phone.

So, I try to call my dad at three locations.  And I try to call my husband.  And NSis is trying to call.  I haven't been able to formulate my full reply to her text from yesterday (see two posts back.)  I take a few minutes to gather myself.  I take a few minutes to bide some time.  I answer the next time she calls.  And she lets loose on me.  She snaps immediately asking why I'm hanging up on her (I really thought I had her on the other line. I didn't know that I was hanging up on her when I disconnected from my calls).  I tell her I wasn't and try to discuss it with her.  She yells at me for not responding to her text yesterday.  I tell her I haven't been able to. She interrupts and assaults me for not "calling her back" for the past two months.  I try desperately to remain calm.  I explain I did try to reach her but that she responded with vague statements.  I say that I understand she's having a hard time.  She launches into a tyraid about her recent problems and how I've not been there at all for her.  I tell her I will not allow her to verbally assault me like she's been doing to my dad.  "LIKE DAD, huh?"  She snarls.  Oops.  I should've stopped at verbal assault.  She screams at me some more.  I again tell her I will not listen to her assault me, but that I understand she's having a hard time.  She screams at me again for not being there.  And I lost my shit.  I scream back that she's never once been fucking there for me.  Not once.  "OH YEAH!  I'VE NEVER BEEN THERE!"  And I hang up the phone.

I felt sucker punched.  I was shaking so badly I couldn't stand up.  I sobbed uncontrollably.  And I sat in the feeling for a moment.  No one should make me feel like that.  And I decided I was done.

I called my husband and told him the story and calmed myself down.   Then, I called my mother and told her that I am uninterested in further communication from my sister until she gets some help.  I explained what had happened and that I would not be involved with some one like that.  That I can take stress, that I can support people, that I'm not running from anything, but that I will not allow someone to abuse me like that anymore.   I explained that the actions of my sister in the past few months have been childish, unstable, and inconsistent   That  I can not piece together the truth from what she's said.  That she has been sneaky, deceptive, and inconsistent with my parent's too, which leads me to question the truth of what's going on.  That I will no longer play these games with her.  NM seems relieved.  She seems calmed by this.  WTF?  She agrees with me.  She says she understands.  She says that she wouldn't want to deal with it either.  That NSis has been calling and assaulting her (I might add that NM told me in the first conversation that NSis had contacted my grandmother and had an "emotional" conversation.  Huh.)  She tells me that I've done nothing wrong in the situation.  She has an appointment (this is actually legit) and has to go.

During my time on the phone, Nsis called me back four more times.  I got two voice mails.  I told DH that I will not be listening to them, and that he'll have to erase them for me.  He suggested that I text her back that when she wants to have an adult conversation with me that I'll listen.  But I don't fucking think so.  You can't have an adult conversation with the mentally deranged.

36 comments:

  1. Oh yuck, Jessie. I'm sorry. Yes, get your DH to screen and delete the voicemails - I get mine to do it, too.

    There's not a lot you can actually do to help them. They just want you to suffer with them in all this. It's typical, and it's rotten, and I really feel terribly for you. :-(

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    1. I have no desire to help my sister. She can figure out her own shit without beating me up in the process.
      Thanks for your support.

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  2. jessie,
    Are you breathing? In. Hold it. Out. Hold it. Repeat.

    I'm sorry that you had this happen to you, that you are in the middle of the tirade. I'm sorry that you had to live through that moment of hell with all the hits coming at you from different directions.

    You don't deserve to be treated like this by your NSis and you don't deserve to be set up to be treated like this by anyone else, NM included.

    I'm thinking of you. Keep breathing.
    Love,
    Vanci

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    1. Thanks Vanci. I think I'm back to my calmer self. It was like being struck by lightening.

      Funny, I had been feeling kind of sorry for NM. And then she just called to check on me. She was stoic...for lack of a better word. And she kept turning the conversation around to her, her, and more of her. All my fucking empathy for this has been used up.

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    2. jessie,
      Yeaaaaahhhhhh, I know. You're going through your process and getting where you need to go and I totally respect that. I do. I'm an honest chic, though, and I have to tell you that I read the NM part of your post like this:
      She could have left you a message telling you what was actually going on, but she made you call her instead. (Look at what your sister is doing to me! Fix her!) She then goes for the sympathy vote. (Look at what your sister is doing to me! Fix me!) She puts the decision to involve your dad in your hands (absolving herself of the outcome of that particular bust up,) and makes you responsible for fixing the family. Then, when the shit hits the fan (after she's firmly placed it in YOUR living room, not hers,) she gets to use the right words to tell you that you're right. (See what a good mom I am, being all supportive!)

      Thanks for taking the bullet for us after we threw ya out in front of the bus, jess, you're a peach! (Sorry, I'm in love with mixed metaphors.)

      In my experience, this is one of the many tactics in the Narc arsenal that they use to *pull you back in.*

      But, and again, my opinion only, she's not getting what she needs out of you just yet... so she's calling to check in and make sure that your focus is in the right place: HER.

      I'm glad that you've found your zen. Keep it up. You'll make it through this, whatever the outcomes.

      Love,
      Vanci

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    3. "I'm sorry that you had to live through that moment of hell with all the hits coming at you from different directions."

      Ditto, ditto, ditto. It sucks. It just sucks. They are trying to overwhelm you, scare you, break you. You're doing okay. I love that you told yourself to take a few extra seconds and moments when trying to deal with NM and NSIS. That, in my opinion, is super duper important. You have a right to as much time as you need. They can not take that from you.

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    4. Vanci, You are spot in in your analysis of NM and her crap. I don't know what I was thinking taking that second call. I was pissed that I felt even an inkling of sorry for her. She put herself in this damn position and continues to put herself in this position and I can tell she is not interesting in any other path, despite her suggestions that she is "sick of it". I tested her a bit tonight, offering some ways to get help with the problem, all of which she refused and most of which she turned around on me. She sucked me in for a moment, but I'm much better now. Thanks to you and all my friends here.

      Jonsi: I'm learning. Taking a moment to think!

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  3. When they get stoic, I head for the door.
    As bad as the back and forth was between you, you didn't hold anything back. So they are kind of on notice that you have had it up to here with all of them.

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    1. Yeah, I was determined to put them on notice that this was enough of this shit. That was my main reason for talking to NM the second time. To let her know that I wouldn't be putting up with this anymore.

      And the stoic stuff is creepy. I decided the best tactic for that is just to not say anything. The silence was deafening at first, but it shut her up and got her off the damn phone.

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  4. Whoa dude.

    There's LOTS going on here.

    I'm going to be all over the place, not working my way through from top to bottom, just sharing thoughts as they come to me.

    This: "NM seems relieved. She seems calmed by this. WTF? She agrees with me. She says she understands. She says that she wouldn't want to deal with it either." You need to borrow my bullshit stamp for a while, my friend. She's bullshitting you. Playing sides. In a MAJOR kind of way. This particular little facade screams fake to me. And your initial reaction (Huh?) is right on. Her reaction is confusing as fuck because it doesn't make any sense. Her response does not at all coincide with the shit that comes out the other side of her mouth, and how much you want to bet she's saying the opposite to your sister: "Oh I know honey, she's never there for you. She should be helping you right now. It's not fair what she's doing to you. And by the way, it's not fair what she's doing to ME, either. Now let me list off a thousand reasons why." Then she probably goes off into a world of me-me-mes, because she's not at all interested in helping your sister either.

    She is, afterall, the biggest reason why your sister is where she is.

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    1. "She is, afterall, the biggest reason why your sister is where she is" Bingo!! I tried to tell her tonight if she didn't like being in the middle of things, she should step the fuck out. And oh, man, the back pedaling started. Well, it's only been once I did that and I can't just leave her and on and on. When I told her that she was right that she needed to take care of herself and protect herself, she also spun that. It's like talking to a dummy with faces on both sides. She says one thing and than finds fault in me agreeing with her. Maybe it's like a conversation with a ping-pong ball. And you are right on in seeing that she is sneaking in little snipes about me not being there for HER.

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  5. NM didn't leave the point of her call in the message she left? I don't like that. Fishy fishy. It was a setup. The whole thing was a setup.

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    1. Nope. I think I got the call because she couldn't get a hold of my step dad. And the "should I call your dad" thing was an excuse. She also told me that she didn't even know if she should tell me and thought she'd just 'call me when it was done' but then decided that I 'deserved' to know. How's that for narc spin?!

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  6. One of the first things that seemed glaring to me was your sister's attitude about how you're not there for her. THIS ATTITUDE FRUSTRATES THE FUCKING SHIT OUT OF ME.

    It's so all or none with these people. You either have to be with them, holding their hand every damn second of every damn day, or else they don't want you around because they don't like the terms that you set. And their terms are NEVER fucking reasonable. So, in her mind, nothing that you do is good enough because you don't fulfill her needs the way SHE wants you too. And with all of the completely ridiculous games she has been playing over the last few months, it's not at all reasonable to ask you for anything more than what you have done. She has made it very clear that she doesn't want to tell the truth. How the hell are you supposed to help someone who won't even tell you what the hell is wrong with her?

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    1. Well, that's my thinking. Help you with what? You haven't fucking CALLED ME to tell me anything!

      It is all about her all the time. I'm expected to be there whenever she needs me (even at the expense of DH and my kids). I'm just same damn lady in waiting for her. Because her life sucks. And my life is "perfect". And I owe her. And really, what am I doing? Just sitting around with my kids. Nothing important in her book. Nothing nearly as important as the chaos in her life. And anything less than chasing after her, begging her to let me help her, being there to clean up anything is not being a good sister.

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  7. "He suggested that I text her back that when she wants to have an adult conversation with me that I'll listen." At this point, I'm in agreeance with you, Jess. You can argue with crazy all day long, but it's not going to get you anywhere. I think continuing the crazy dialog is just going to continue the craziness. And I don't think that telling her to converse like an adult will actually get her to do it. If she was capable of that, she'd be doing it already.

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  8. Replies
    1. Thanks V.R. Anybody want to buy me a beer at the Ungrateful Little Bastard's Bar?

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    2. I'd be glad to. :)

      Hope you're ok. What a fucking shitstorm. Makes Sandy look like a little rain shower.

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    3. Thanks. I'm doing better. But man, when it rains it pours in narc-o-land.

      Hey, I'd still love that blog invite :). Or were you just teasing when you offered it up to me earlier :)? I sent you another email through your blogger profile. Nothing showed up?

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    4. vi,
      Let's take this girl out! Jessie, you can drink vi's beer, my beer and you'll have not one but TWO sober designated drivers!

      LOL.
      Love,
      Vanci

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    5. I'll buy a round! Hey guys, drinks on me at the ULB Bar!

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    6. ULB BAR TOUR!! Karaoke by Q!

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  9. No. Nothing showed up.

    Try writing to delilahanne at gmail

    I'll check my junkmail again. :)

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    1. OK, VR, I tried to send to that email and was told that it isn't a recognizable address.

      I'm trying! Can you just email me? jsrelease at email.

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  10. And, no! I'm not teasing you! I promise!

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  11. I wondered for a long time why I put myself through many shit storms before I said enough and meant it. I finally decided I wanted to be able to say, "I tried the best I could, there is no reasoning with them. What I do only hurts me and doesn't improver their situation." You are in the middle of the process. I get the feeling you are looking at your mother and sister relationships recognizing the flying crap. You will get though this phase. You will shake it off and step up. You will find a different way to live that far exceeds anything you believed possible.

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  12. Sorry all this nastiness is happening to you, Jessie.

    The undertone I hear in your NM and Nsis's words/actions is they want you to fix their problems, which had nothing to do with you and you had no part in creating.

    Indeed, from your previous posts, it looks like you've made an effort to avoid becoming enmeshed in any further problems with them. Still, here they come to somehow put the responsibility for the mess and/or cleaning it up on you.

    If you ever do want to speak to your Nsis again (I understand you might feel pressured about this if she's truly ill) the "no verbal assault" boundary and being treated civilly will have to stand firm.

    My own sister has been ill for a long time and I feel bad being distant from her because it doesn't seem kind. However, our relationship has always been tense and despite efforts on my part there is simply nothing that changes that. Sometimes there is no good solution, no real closure but only walking away.

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    1. Elena, Thanks for your understanding. It's comforting to know that someone has a similar situation with their sister. I do feel badly that I can't support her. But I've come to conclude that she just won't let me. It's a difficult time to draw a line in the sand, but I really had to. And as I've seen her treating my parents just as badly, if not worse during this time, and they are actually trying to support her, I can see it's a lose/lose situation.

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  13. I'm sorry too. It's all I can really offer. Other than people suck!
    Thinking of you.

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  14. You're right, Jessie. You can't have a grown-up conversation with deranged persons. By hanging up, you did the only thing you could do.

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    1. Well, she can't say I didn't warn her. I told her three or four times to calm down. Oh well.

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  15. Jessie - first thing, damn. What a nasty, ugly mess. I'm so sorry you are in the middle of it.

    Second - (look. I'm sort of the cranky old lady on the block. I'm more of a 'boot in yer ass' kind of tough love lady. So this comes from a good place. But...) isn't it time you stop this crap from coming at you? At least, isn't it time to THINK about stopping it? You can see from every single blog on the subject, that the only way to stop all of this nonsense and bullshit from hitting you is for YOU to stop puting yourself in firing range. Those narcs will just keep coming at you, bleeding you dry.

    Stop answering calls. State your boundaries and stick to them. Run email filters. DO NOT ENGAGE. The only way for you to be in the middle of these shitstorms is for you to AGREE to be in the middle.

    They don't deserve you. They do not deserve your time, your thoughtful consideration, your energy, YOUR LOVE. You have to be the guardian at the gate of your life. They will never learn to be different, they will never begin to treat you with respect. It doesn't happen with these people. Nothing will ever change until YOU change it.

    Upsi and Vanci and Jonsi are much better at giving advice (I'm just all 'full speed ahead! damn the torpedos!) And I also know that what I'm advising sounds so simple, but is NOT SIMPLE OR EASY. I know.

    this is a horrible heartbreaking place for you to be in. We are all here - even us Cranky Pants.

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    1. Thanks Gladys, and you are right and I appreciate your directness! I am working on it, I promise!

      I think I never really expected what I was about to get yesterday. I thought it might be bad, but I wasn't prepared for my mother. I DID know what my plan was with NSis and I knew she was going to attack. I really, really wanted to shut her down and establish a boundary because if I didn't, she would've kept coming at me. So, we'll see how it goes with her.

      Thanks for you thoughts and support.

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  16. That is a total shitstorm. Would def. take you out for a drink.

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