What can be hard is when the person who does this is someone who you do kind of value. A lady friend of mine who did this was a good person whom I admired in other ways. She really was a good soul, but she would talk over me when I tried to interject a comment. She was alienated from her 3 adult kids, and I think her unwillingness to listen was probably part of it. Then she began to get hard of hearing, which made the problem even worse. My own life got real stressful on a number of fronts, and then I simply stopped calling her. She phoned me, wanting to know why I wasn't calling. I said my life had just gotten too crazy. We drifted apart, and I was glad.

When I was younger, I had more patience with people who wore me out mentally. But, as I get older, I'm finding I don't have the time or patience. There are only so many hours in a day, and my time belongs to me.

Every time you let someone bend your ear for a lot longer than you have any interest in listening to, you are letting them think that you are okay with what they are doing. So they just persist more. Then you just build up more resentment toward them. It becomes a bad cycle.

my sons father used to do that all the time. i had to leave him because of it i couldn't take it anymore!!! i need to be validated sometimes during conversations but there was nonec either, i do relate.