I am a 29-year-old English doctor living in Italy. After graduating from medical school, I moved here, met my 37-year-old fiancé, Marco, and now work as a medical resident. Together, we have a beautiful five-month-old daughter named Willow.
My relationship with my father has always been complicated and highly inconsistent. Years ago, he abandoned my mother and me to marry a woman named Tammy, who has never liked me. Tammy was never able to have biological children of her own. When Willow was born, my mother’s side of the family traveled to Italy to support us and meet the baby, but we didn’t hear a single word from my dad or Tammy.
That changed completely two weeks ago. Out of nowhere, the two of them showed up at our doorstep. They claimed they were “in the area on holiday” and wanted to meet Willow. Although caught off guard, I let them in. Shortly after they arrived, Willow grew fussy. Since we combination feed, I grabbed a nursing cover and let her latch onto me.
Suddenly, Tammy blurted out that the breastfeeding would “have to stop soon.” Confused, I asked her what she meant. She looked at me and coldly stated that breastfeeding couldn’t be maintained once Willow was living with them. I stared at her, utterly baffled.
Tammy then pulled out her phone and began showing me photos of a fully furnished nursery. She casually suggested that we split custody of Willow, adding that I shouldn’t worry because she already had everything set up. I was completely paralyzed by her audacity, but she kept going. She claimed the age gap between Marco and me was unhealthy for a child, argued that I clearly needed help, and accused me of caring more about my career than staying home with my baby. She concluded that since she couldn’t breastfeed, I needed to dry up my milk supply immediately so she could take over.
Furious, I told her she had to be completely out of her mind if she thought I was giving her my baby. Tammy just told me to calm down, claiming she wasn’t asking for full custody, but that she could provide a “calmer and stabler home” while I could visit whenever I wanted. She actually said it was what she “deserved.”
Thankfully, Marco stepped in. He immediately escorted them out of our home and made sure Willow and I were safe.
Ever since that nightmare, the harassment hasn’t stopped. I have been getting texts from my father telling me I need to give Tammy a chance to “prove herself as a good caregiver.” Meanwhile, Tammy keeps spamming my phone with photos of the nursery she built.
Fortunately, they have no legal ground. They flew back home, my dad isn’t on my birth certificate, and my mother is Willow’s legal guardian in our will. We’ve arranged for Willow to attend the hospital daycare where Marco and I work, and we are cutting ties with them completely.
