Hi everyone, I’m in a really tough spot emotionally and could use some advice or support. Recently, I’ve been feeling the urge to pull away from my entire family, and it’s been overwhelming.

For context, I’ve always felt like I’ve had to carry a lot of the emotional and practical load in my family. The most recent example of this is a situation where my mom, brother, and I were planning to buy a house together, and somehow all the responsibility of handling everything fell on me. This isn’t a one-time thing—it’s been a pattern in my family for as long as I can remember.

This time, the pressure became unbearable. I was already dealing with a toxic job, digestive health issues, and feeling socially isolated, and this added responsibility just pushed me over the edge. When I finally told my mom that I couldn’t handle the pressure anymore, her solution was to offer to buy the house from me and give me back my money. I was blown away that this was her idea of addressing the emotional strain I was under.

My family has never been great at communicating, and at this point, I feel like there’s no real way to resolve the pain and trauma caused by these repeated patterns. I’m even planning to go to therapy with my mom, but I’m not sure it will help, and part of me feels like it’s too late for her to give me what I need.

I’ve been feeling so alone and disconnected from them, and I’m struggling to figure out what to do next. The idea of pulling away seems like the only way to protect myself, but it also feels incredibly painful. Has anyone else been through something similar? How did you navigate the decision to distance yourself from family, especially when it feels like they don’t or can’t understand your pain? How did you establish support systems outside of them after distance?

Any advice or words of support would mean a lot right now. Thank you for reading.