My post to you Tisha was not meant to come across as critical of you. I am glad you can see that I am doing my best to be "thoughtful" as well as trying to actually help define the emotions you experience which I can see are so very challenging and I can actually relate to what you have been describing. It's very hard when one wants to connect with family and yet when making the effort it just becomes toxic.

I have a very long thread of my own where I face some very toxic challenges of my own with my own family of origin in a more private forum. There have been many times where I too wish my husband would stand up for me too. My husband has seen my sister be terrible to me and he cowers and I wish he would just stand up and tell her to stop acting like such a bossy jerk.