Forcing a child to love you usually influences them to do the opposite.

When a child’s parent remarries, it’s often difficult for them to accept the fact that they’ll be in the presence of a new parental figure. Even in cases where the biological parent’s new partner is clearly a better guardian than the child’s other biological parent, a child cannot make sense of this. For a developing brain, familiarity usually trumps good behavior; This is why you see so many children (and adults) clinging to sub-par parents. The hope of rewriting history in tandem with an inability to let things go is a recipe for disaster.

The soon-to-be stepmom in the story below seems to have a big problem with her partner’s 10-year-old son and the fact that he doesn’t consider her a mother figure. With the wedding coming up, the woman insists that they all go to therapy and get to the root of the child’s issue with considering her as a parental figure, but her partner refuses. Why force a child to do something they don’t want, especially at such a formative age? The child will either come around or they won’t, but you can’t force an emotion; They’re too raw and real. Scroll to read the full story below.