What am I going to do with my ex’s family? Our families have been really close, and our issues have torn everyone apart. I know it’s not going to be good for us to be close anymore, but I feel my anger for my ex is also being directed towards their family. How do I figure this out?!
Dear Ex Family,
Ending BIG relationships often means collateral damage — friends who pick a side, relationships that hinged on the “we” rather than you. It is painful. Grieve it.
All relationships have an ebb and flow to them. Some of the relationships that orbited you and your ex may simply need time and space to recalibrate. Some relationships were so central to your now defunct “we” that they may end. Communicate on those that feel most significant to you but remember — clinging won’t save them. Accept. Let go. Mourn. That is part of the ritual of endings. Relationships aren’t wasted failures because they do not last forever.
I am sorry for this time of endings, and I promise there are beginnings on the other side.
In eternal optimism,
Adri