tranquil Marital Homes

Why is the MIL/DIL Relationship such a strained one?

There is not one of us here, who hasn’t heard a horror story about a mother-in-law and a daughter-in-law. Maybe many of us have in turn repeated these stories to others ourselves- sometimes for amusement, sometimes to vent negative emotions, sometimes to try to educate and inform others and sometimes just to gossip. 

The reality is that these stereotypes of an overpowering and overbearing mother-in-law and a wayward and uncontrollable daughter in law are often the cause of preconceived notions and make relationships awkward from the outset.  Stereotypes are perpetuated throughout our culture, gossip and stories told through our tv screens and family tales.

They then become a highly sensitive matter and lead to over reactions, hypersensitivity, unreasonable behaviour on both sides and can become a cause of deep rooted friction between husband and wife, mother and son, children and grandparents.

This is why its important to wipe the slate clean and start again and tell the narrative from a new perspective. Discuss the relationship with in-laws as a positive and mutually beneficial one.

Instead of impending doom- think of the relationship like this: The daughter-in-law gains a maternal figure who can care and nurture her and continue to support her husband. She can extend that emotional and physical support to her daughter in law and her grandchildren too. The mother-in-law w gains an extra daughter who she can enjoy the company of, who will help out with the family and both gain an extra person to love and bond with.

Put the stereotypes aside and think of mutual benefit and love

Come along to our coffee morning and join our panel discussion of mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law for a lively and informative discussion