Anonymous wrote:Depends what you mean by awful. At some level of awful I suppose you need to stop associating with her.
In my case I would just call it rude, socially awkward, insensitive, clueless. It's just who she is. I don't think she means for any of it to sound as awful as it does, I think she's just selfish and awkward and out of touch. Sometimes I smile and nod, sometimes I push back. Often DH will approach her if necessary.
Control your own reaction to some extent - you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Keep your distance when you can.
Did I write this? This is my MIL too. But of course, she also gets upset because she senses I'm keeping my distance, and she doesn't like that either. I'd rather have her upset because I'm distant, than have to deal with her as a "close" relative. She is someone who has stopped speaking to almost everyone she was once close too, so that's how her "close" relationships normally end.