Struggling with a mother who’s emotionally controlling - need advice, assalamu alaikum
Assalamu alaikum, I know parents have rights and deserve respect, and that applies when a parent is willing to work on the relationship. I’m sharing this because I’m struggling and need to hear from others who understand. I live at home with my mother and I’m almost 30. I want to be treated like an almost-30-year-old woman, not a child who gets lectured, yelled at, and bossed around. That difference has caused a lot of tension between us. I’m not openly disobedient: I wear the hijab, try to pray, study tafsir, and read the Quran. I don’t go out to work because she doesn’t want me leaving the house alone. But when I disagree with her, she says I’m far from Islam. When I assert my rights as a Muslim woman, she calls me disobedient, says I hurt her, and warns I’ll be punished in the hereafter. I never intend to hurt her - I only try to share my perspective, and apparently I’m always wrong and it upsets her. Today was a small example that blew up: I was cleaning my room and watching a cafe-simulator gameplay on YouTube (no nudity or anything haram). She came in, asked what I was watching, and when I said it was a game she kept asking why. Then she told me to never watch gameplays because games are bad. I said I don’t play them, I just watch sometimes, and it seemed trivial to be so controlling about. She then accused me of being led astray from Islam. I never caused trouble with dating or hanging out - she never let me keep friends, so I don’t have them. Her control, isolation, and constant attempts to bend me to her will feel oppressive and suffocating. This treatment has made me doubt my faith and wonder why Allah would allow me to go through this. Some days it’s hard to want to keep living. Her words and actions hurt so much that I feel inadequate about living independently, getting married, or having children, because I’m perpetually treated like a 10-year-old. She insists I’m the problem, not her. I know we must honor parents, but I also feel she’s been the source of so much pain, keeping me under her control and using me as she wishes. I don’t know how much more I can take. Every day I get closer to doing something rash just to escape and stop carrying the guilt of upsetting her. If anyone has advice on how to cope, set boundaries in a way that’s respectful, or seek help while keeping my deen intact, please share. JazakAllahu khair.