15 Times In-Laws Behaved So Badly, It Should Be Illegal

You know that phrase, "When you marry someone, you're also marrying their family"?

There should be a law against this being true, or at the very least some sort of family-in-law protection program because, MY WORD, some people just don't know how to behave.

Enter: Reddit user u/Buried_Cerberus , who asked the r/AskWomen community, What is your worst experience with a partner's family member or close friend? And the answers did not hold back.

Some stories made me legitimately nauseated, whereas others left me so angry that I paced around my apartment, unsure of what to do with my newfound rage.

So without further ado, I hereby present to the jury my case for An Individual's Right To Fully Disengage From Their In-Laws.

To start, here are two ways not to respond when you learn of a marriage or engagement...

1. "When I spontaneously married my ex husband, his grandfather pointed at me and said, 'you fucking bitch' when he found out."

— u/jillinkla

2. "He told [his mom] we got engaged while he was helping her move furniture and she said 'Oh. Anyways.'

She's a massively bitter person and looks down her nose at me a bit." — u/imonlyamoth

Next, I present to the jury, the perils of gift-giving/receiving...

3. "I have some really crappy experiences with my ex's families, but the one that always sticks out (mainly because it makes me laugh) is on my first Christmas morning with my ex and his family, I’m mid-opening a present and his brother just goes 'I miss Kelly,' who was my ex’s ex.

😂😂😂 I have so many more about that brother but that one just always sticks out due to the sheer audacity!" — u/_yungpizzaslice

4. "When I met my next boyfriend's mother, he got me a gift that was an inside joke between the two of us. I laughed and kissed him on the shoulder. His mum got so weird that she walked over and kissed him on the other shoulder while not breaking eye contact.

Not the worst, just super fucking weird, I think she had a thing for her son." — u/androidis4lyf

For the jury's consideration: an unhinged story about weight loss pills...

5. "When I was 18, I took these weight loss pills that worked wonders. My boyfriend (at the time) told his mom about them and she asked if she could buy some off of me. So, I gave her $300 worth of pills and told her to give me the money the next time I saw her. Weeks went by, and she never paid me.

Well, one day, my boyfriend, his mom, and I are sitting in the kitchen and I casually bring it up. She claims she gave him $300 to give to me. He claims that she never gave him $300. They both start arguing/yelling at each other and I’m just sitting there in silence. Then, my boyfriend’s father walks in (he just got home from work) and my boyfriend’s mother suddenly bursts into tears. She tells him that my boyfriend and I are 'accusing her of taking pills' that it’s 'all a lie' that we’re 'trying to take money from her' etc. My boyfriend’s father just stood there, stunned. He asked me to wait out on the porch, so I do. About 15 minutes later, he comes out and asks me point blank, 'did my wife buy $300 worth of weight loss pills from you or no?' and I said 'yes.' Then, he hands me a check for $300 and is like, 'just an FYI, my wife doesn’t have money. It’s all my money. I own and pay for everything in this family.'" — u/pbd1996

Next, I call to the stand: a plethora of instances in which people should have kept their mouths shut...

6. "His older brother never acknowledged me, never said 'hi', looked my way, nothing. One day we were all at an outdoor bar event and me in my litty state decided to confront him and have a first conversation with him. When I asked why he always ignores me he replied, 'well….you’re hot and you’re banging my brother' and chuckled.

I stood there jaw dropped, backed away slowly, and then ran off lmao. Terrifying" — u/yungpsychonaut420

7. "My ex used to put his hands on my face a lot and let’s just say he did not have good hygiene, so I had a full face of acne (which strangely went away as soon as we broke up). My ex, however, didn’t really have any. His dad one time was sitting with us and talking about how glad he was that my ex didn’t have any acne because it was so gross and ugly. I just kinda sat there awkwardly."

— u/Lovealltigers

8. "My wedding day, at the reception, my now FIL drunkenly and loudly criticised me about the weight I had lost for the wedding in front of everyone. My husband, used to his alcoholism, tried to pacify him by agreeing with him instead of standing up for me. It just egged him on and made the whole thing last longer."

— u/August161986

9. "My ex's dad said to me, 'Hey Sexy,' and nobody said anything."

10. "Being called a disgusting w-word and hearing [my ex's mom] yell at him to never bring me to their house again for accidentally leaving a t-shirt in their bathroom after taking a shower.

I later found out she somehow got it into her head that not only was I going to 'steal' her almost 30 year old son from her, but also her husband who was over 70 at that time. She thought I purposely left my clothes in the bathroom so that he could smell them. That woman was something else. Very unwell." — u/trentovna

And here, for the court, is evidence that cohabitating with your partner's family can be the seventh ring of hell...

11. "[My ex's dad] offered to let me move into his basement for a few months while I was looking for a job after graduating college. I made sure we had a full conversation to set some ground rules and expectations for both of us. The day I moved in there were suddenly way more rules, none of which were reasonable. He expected me to do all the dishes, not just the ones I used, I had to do his dishes too. I couldn't leave the house without telling him where I was going and when I was going to be back.

The worst thing was when I had my period. I put a plastic bag in the bathroom trash can, disposed of my tampon trash, and went on with my day. Came back later, and there was no bag in the trash can. I thought it was weird but I just put another bag in, changed my tampon, and went on with life.

The next time I came upstairs, he cornered me and told me I wasn't allowed to throw my tampons away in the house, I had to walk them to the dumpster every single time. My ex and I started staying at his mother's house instead and I got my own apartment two months later." — u/Human-Source-2337

I am admitting into evidence: two examples of in-laws making comments about somebody else's family planning...

12. "My hubby and I wanted a second kid, so we were actively trying. One day, I was at my MIL’s house, chitchatting when she told me that my husband didn’t want another kid because me and my oldest child were too overwhelming for him to take care of.

I came home and told my hubby this. He had never discussed us having a second child with her. She had completely made it up on the spot." — u/BlueArachne

13. "His stepmother told me that I’m selfish for wanting to get married and have children (with my bf of 5+ years); that marriage is just a piece of paper and not everybody gets to be a mother.

Doesn’t explain why she’s been married… not once, but twice. Both of her children are married with kids of their own. I guess I just don’t deserve it." — u/catmoblu444

Fine people of the jury, surely you agree that pranks involving somebody else's child are decidedly not funny...

14. "My ex and I invited his siblings and their spouses to a weekend at our house. I went to take a shower and when I got out, looked for my three year old daughter. No one had seen her and my ex's sister and SIL were also gone. I was frantic, not knowing if they had taken her somewhere or kidnapped her or what.

(It was my first time meeting the SIL and the sister had mental issues.)

Just shy of calling 911, the three of them returned. They had taken my child to a store to buy her a toy. Everyone was in on it and thought it was funny to see me freaking out about my 'lost' child." — u/laurabun136

And lastly, for the jury's consideration in the case for An Individual's Right To Fully Disengage From Their In-Laws: a potential attempted murder...

15. "My ex’s cousin put me in the hospital because of nuts, which I’m anaphylactic to. He said he would make me nut-free ice cream, but then didn’t, and passed it off as it was…it landed me in the ER."

— u/holiestcannoly

So, have I convinced you fine people of the jury? Let me know your thoughts (and experiences, good or bad!) in the comments below. Or, if you want to remain anonymous, feel free to fill out this Google Form . Your responses could be featured in a BuzzFeed Community post!

Some entries may have been edited for length/clarity.