My daughter is referring to her stepmother as “Mom” rather than me.

Seeing her child grow apart is every mother’s worst fear.

That’s the truth for Joy, whose teenage daughter wants to spend less time with her. Joy looked into it herself and found that her ex-husband and his wife are responsible for what’s going on. She went online to share her story and ask for help because she needs it.

This is the letter Joy sent:

“A lot has changed since my ex and I got divorced eight years ago. On the weekends, our daughter goes to see him. Our 14-year-old daughter has been asking to go to her dad’s and stepmom’s house more often lately. Things have been fine for a while.

She calls me “Joy” instead of “Mom.” I ignored it because I thought it was normal for teens to act that way. The other day, though, I heard her call her stepmother “Mom.”
I was so mad that I chose to search her backpack. They gave her expensive makeup, fancy rings, and beauty products she’s been asking for for a while. This made me very angry.
Everything started to make sense all of a sudden. My ex-boyfriend has a lot more money than I do, and it’s clear that he’s using money to win his daughter’s love. His wife never liked me, so she’s using that money to get closer to my teen. As a result, my child is pulling away from me more and more.

I no longer even recognize my own child. At this point, I don’t know what to do; I feel like I’m losing my daughter. What must I do?

Sincerely,
Joy”