When Your Family Won’t Accept Your Spouse

With the holidays around the corner, many families will have the chance to spend more time together. For some families, this time is spent fighting and re-opening old wounds. Today’s guests seek Larry’s help in resolving issues with the in-laws this holiday season:

Marla and Scott are dealing with an array of relationship issues, many of which they say are exacerbated by the involvement of their in-laws. Ever since the couple got married, their intimacy levels have dropped significantly. Consequently, Marla suspects Scott of cheating and often calls her mother Bonnie to confide and complain. Bonnie wants Marla to leave Scott because she is sick of seeing Marla in pain. Scott’s mom is another factor in the family war zone, as Marla feels that she is constantly rude to her and inappropriate when dealing with their daughter Cassidy. Larry suggested that both parents step out of the equation so that Marla and Scott can tend to mending their relationship on their own.

When Sabrina married David, she already had one strike in the eyes of her in-laws – she’s black. Sabrina says David’s parents are racist and constantly treat her with disrespect, even calling her the “N”-word. Her only form of retaliation is to limit the time they spend with her daughter Brandi, but Sabrina feels that David also needs to take a stand against his parents on her behalf. David insists that his parents’ bad behavior is in the past and feels uncomfortable giving them ultimatums.

Guest expert Stacy Kaiser pointed out that David spends more time defending his parents than defending his wife. She suggested that David start putting his own family first and his parents second.

Vanessa feels that her 16-year-old sister Renata’s style of dress is way too sexy for school. She is concerned that Renata is going down the wrong path and giving people the wrong impressions. As a bilingual student who makes good grades, Renata says that she feels entitled to dress how she wants. She adds that she also feels more confident when wearing provocative clothing. Larry commended Renata on her goal of being an attorney and asked her to consider toning down her style a notch. He also offered to set her up with a teen mentor in her hometown.

Quick Clicks

Mentoring services for today’s guests were provided by the YWCA in Kalamazoo, MI. For more information on mentoring programs in the Kalamazoo area, go to:
www.ywcakalamazoo.com

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Visit Stacy Kaiser's website at:
www.stacykaiser.com