by Vicki Andis

Created on: July 20, 2008

I really can't believe that anyone has experienced "stress", like I have. Try living in a home with your mother, brother, daughter, and son. Not to mention the two dogs and four cats who constantly run in and out of the house.

My mother came to live with me when my husband passed away, nearly ten years ago. She is now seventy years old, and holds down a full time job. I know it isn't easy for her to work every day, and the stress between us is a living entity.

To make matters worse, I have been on temporary disability from my job for over a year, and the amount of money this brings in is not enough. My doctors have run tests, scans, sonagrams, and a whole lot more. I was given a blood transfusion a few months back for chronic anemia, and did feel well enough to get a part-time job. It lasted about a month, before all of my problems came back, and I had to quit. It figures.

My children, who are seventeen and twenty years old, think that life is a free ride. Told that he would have to help out with rent and bills, my twenty year old son was astounded. He did contribute a little bit about three months ago, and never offered to help again. This causes a shouting match between my mother and my son. It usually ends up with me in the middle, getting blamed for the whole mess. "You didn't raise him right", my mother yells, while my son tells me he has to make a car payment, pay a phone bill, or buy new tires for his car. The thing about buying new tires for his car sends my mother into a lengthly spiel about priorities. The whole extravaganza usually ends with loud yelling and doors slamming.

My seventeen year old daughter is the source of a lot of my stress. She apparently thinks that I work for her, going so far as to call me in the kitchen, from her cell phone, to request a sandwich. I have learned not to go into her room, as I am afraid I would not be able to find my way out. Old dishes, dirty clothing, video games, and who knows what else, lay in wait to trip me or worse. She doesn't know what a bucket and mop are, how to dust her room, or where her clean clothing goes. This is a never ending source of stress for me. I used to try to clean it up a little when she was away, but all that did was reinforce the fact that someone else would clean her room if she waited long enough.

My brother is staying with us for a while, and has taken to staying out in the garage as much as possible. I can't say that I blame him, but it is pretty stressful to know that he would rather

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