New Mom Backed for Cutting Off Contact With Son's Grandmother: 'No Empathy'

Internet commenters rallied behind one new mother who said her son's grandmother has been less than helpful since he was born earlier this year.

In a viral Reddit post published on r/AmITheA**hole, Redditor u/almost30xoxo (otherwise referred to as the original poster, or OP) described the hellacious series of events that has plagued her family over the last eight months and revealed the final straw that spurred the decision to cut her own mother off completely.

Titled, "[Am I the a**hole] for denying my mom access to her grandson because she refuses to help me?" the post has received nearly 15,000 upvotes and 3,000 comments in the last day.

"My husband and I...are first time parents," OP began. "I had a difficult pregnancy."

Continuing to explain that her maternity leave was short and that she has since been diagnosed with postpartum depression, the original poster said both she and her husband work demanding jobs and have been helping take care of her mother-in-law, who is in poor health.

The original poster also said that, to add insult to injury, the couple's home was recently flooded after a pipe burst.

Still, however, her mother refuses to help.

"My mom...lives 1 hour away and has never once offered to help with anything...[she] wants to see the baby if it's very low effort," OP wrote. "Once I called her at the height of my PPD sobbing, saying I was scared to be alone and [asked if] she could come over. But she had brunch plans.

"My best friend of 25+ years is getting married next weekend...[and] children are not invited because the venue is unsafe," OP continued. "We finally found a babysitter...[but] the babysitter called on Friday and cancelled.

"I finally explained my desperation to my mom and asked if she could watch Jack for 24 hours...I was in tears begging her, but my mom said no," OP added. "It was the straw that broke the camel's back after months of no empathy...I will be cutting off contact and she won't get to see her grandson."

Along with physical recovery and an infant's need for around-the-clock care, many new mothers are faced with a myriad of mental health issues, the most prevalent being postpartum depression disorder, or PPD.

PPD, which can induce anxiousness, sadness, panic, frustration and hopelessness, affects up to 20 percent of mothers, according to the Postpartum Depression Alliance of Illinois.

The Postpartum Depression Alliance of Illinois also reports that between 60 and 80 percent of mothers experience "postpartum blues" in the days and weeks following birth.

So while it is always imperative that recovering mothers receive focused care and help with their infant, it is just as crucial to provide strong emotional support as well and according to the Cleveland Clinic, that support can range from simply listening to encouraging professional mental health help and treatment when necessary.

Throughout the comment section of the viral Reddit post, many Redditors advocated for mothers struggling with postpartum depression and defended the original poster's choice to cut off her mother from seeing her 8-month-old grandson.

"Relationships are reciprocal and depend on a lot of elements and require cultivation," Redditor u/threeforagirl wrote in the post's top comment, which has received nearly 41,000 upvotes. "If we neglect relationships...they wither and die.

"Your mother has chosen to opt out of all that by declining to help you when you need it," they continued. "She doesn't have to be in that cycle of help and love and support if she'd rather go to her yoga class."

Redditor u/JudgeJed100, whose comment has received more than 11,500 upvotes, offered a more pointed response.

"[Not the a**hole]," they wrote. "It's one thing to refuse to babysit or run an errand or whatever.

"But when your child...calls you crying saying they are terrified of being alone and are clearly in distress and you choose brunch? No. Just no," they continued. "I would have cut my parent off for that right there."

"You were literally having a health crisis, and one of the people in your life who you should be able to rely on to support you simply disappeared," Redditor u/fzooey78 added, receiving more than 5,000 upvotes. "Good for you for drawing a boundary."

Newsweek reached out to u/almost30xoxo for comment.