I'm feeling stressed over things I can't quite put into words.

All I can do for you is to share with you my OWN experience along these lines.

Firstly, other people are VERY bad at reading minds. Quite often, they don't have a clue what YOU are thinking or feeling.

Secondly, if the other people you are discussing are male, take my first point and multiply it to the third power. Sensitivity is NOT the talent most often exhibited by the male of the species.

Thirdly, if you have expectations that are not being met, (and your unmet expectations are making you misearble), and you haven't spoken about what your expectations really ARE, then you really should.

You have to start putting your peace of mind and happiness first. Other than your children, your wellbeing is more important than anyone else's.

Sounds right, I grew up with sociopaths and they literally didn’t care about anything other than their booze. Some people are just cruel and evil.

Understanding any problem is the first step in fixing it...