Niece is struggling and I feel helpless
I have a 14 year old niece who is going through quite a tough time and I really don’t know what else I can do.
Her relationship with her mom (my sis) is not that great now. My niece feels my sis is too harsh and tough on her, but when I speak to my sis, apparently my niece has also been quite difficult and her behaviour hasn’t been the best.
They recently moved to Korea and I think the whole move has been really tough on the family. My sis is also stressed adjusting to a new country. She also has another daughter who is 4, very active and at an adorable age where she gets attention from everyone… family, friends, even random people outside.
I feel this affects my older niece too. She is already having self-esteem issues, especially about how she looks. She was diagnosed with mild autism when she was little, so socially she can be quite timid, while the younger one is the total opposite and a chatterbox.
On and off my niece will text me and say quite depressing things. I try to listen and be there for her but honestly it makes me feel quite helpless because I’m so far away. I also worry that if I interfere too much, my relationship with my sis will suffer or she might feel like I’m taking my niece’s side. At the same time, I know my sis is struggling too and probably doing the best she can while dealing with everything. My bro in law is also new and trying to adapt, but most of the time he is at work. So, you know how that goes with sis doing most of the parenting and bro in law with earning 😩
I don’t want to take sides. I just feel sad for both of them and I don’t know what else I can do from here.
Her relationship with her mom (my sis) is not that great now. My niece feels my sis is too harsh and tough on her, but when I speak to my sis, apparently my niece has also been quite difficult and her behaviour hasn’t been the best.
They recently moved to Korea and I think the whole move has been really tough on the family. My sis is also stressed adjusting to a new country. She also has another daughter who is 4, very active and at an adorable age where she gets attention from everyone… family, friends, even random people outside.
I feel this affects my older niece too. She is already having self-esteem issues, especially about how she looks. She was diagnosed with mild autism when she was little, so socially she can be quite timid, while the younger one is the total opposite and a chatterbox.
On and off my niece will text me and say quite depressing things. I try to listen and be there for her but honestly it makes me feel quite helpless because I’m so far away. I also worry that if I interfere too much, my relationship with my sis will suffer or she might feel like I’m taking my niece’s side. At the same time, I know my sis is struggling too and probably doing the best she can while dealing with everything. My bro in law is also new and trying to adapt, but most of the time he is at work. So, you know how that goes with sis doing most of the parenting and bro in law with earning 😩
I don’t want to take sides. I just feel sad for both of them and I don’t know what else I can do from here.
36-40, F
