Any advice on how to handle NC, when unavoidable associations are made through a member of BPDex's family? I find it triggers me on bad days... .less so on good days. And I feel conflicted about where I stand with that person... .as I have tried to maintain a good relationship with the family member... .but can't help but feel guarded. I sense that the family member is on guard with me as well... .What is this?... .Do I try and address it with the family member... .or ignore it? It feels as though the "elephant in the room" is growing larger and larger... .I want to maintain respectful boundaries on the issue... .(the pwBPD and the family)... .without creating conflict or distance... .Having difficulty sorting it all out ... .Uuugggghh?
I know this is difficult, and I am sorry you are in the midst of working through it all.
I have come to think of "No Contact" as a tool (technique) rather than a law we enforce on ourselves. We use NC to give ourselves space for healing.
Sometimes we just need to trust our instincts on others in close proximity to both. For instance, in this situation, would it be okay to address the issue with the family member? Could you say something like: "I'm a little uncomfortable bringing this up, but I just want you to know that (name) and I are not really speaking at this point, to give us some space for (insert your words). I value our relationship and just want to be explicit."
Or would it be better to give yourself some space from family member too?