A mother’s jealousy distorts a daughter’s normal development
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[/custom_frame_left]When I was writing the book Will I Ever Be Good Enough? Healing the Daughters of Narcissistic Mothers, I found that I heard certain kinds of painful stories over and over again, like themes in a piece of music. One theme was that of mothers being jealous of their daughters. So much so that I included it in what I call the “Ten Stingers” of mother-daughter dynamics when the mother has a high level of narcissistic traits.
Normal or healthier mothers are proud of their children and want them to shine. But a narcissistic mother may perceive her daughter as a threat. If attention is drawn away from the mother, the child suffers retaliation, put-downs, and punishments. The mother can be jealous of her daughter for many reasons: her looks, her youth, material possessions, accomplishments, education and even the young girl’s relationship with the father. This jealousy is particularly difficult for the daughter as it carries a double-message: “Do well so that Mother is proud, but don’t do too well or you will outshine her.”
- Samantha has always been the petite one in the family. She says that most of her relatives are overweight, including her mother, who is obese. When Samantha was 22, her mother ripped her clothes out of her closet and threw them to the bedroom floor, exclaiming, “Who can wear a size four these days? Who do you think you are? You must be anorexic, and we’d better get you some help!”
- Felice, told me, “My mother always wanted me to be pretty but not too pretty. I had a cute little waist, but if I wore a belt that defined my waistline, she told me I looked like a slut.”
- Mary sadly reported, “Mom tells me I’m ugly, but then I am supposed to go out there and be drop-dead gorgeous! I was a homecoming queen candidate and Mom acted proud with her friends but punished me. There’s this crazy-making message: The real me is ugly, but I am supposed to fake it in the real world? I still don’t get it.”
While many people believe that to be envied would be a desirable, powerful experience, in reality being envied, particularly by one’s own mother, is unnerving and awful. The daughter’s sense of self is canceled by disdain and criticism...
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