Dear Prudence,
My sis-in-law is in her mid-30s and has lost custody of her kids. She has been with so many abusive guys that I can’t even keep up. One of them almost killed her last summer. She’s had issues with drinking and drugs, has been in and out of jail for DUI and a probation violation, can’t keep a job, has no license and no place to call her own, and is depressed.
She finally got a job working for a friend of the family who helped her get on the right track and made sure she saw her P.O. and paid her fines. Things were going great. Then she got into an argument with the friend, was kicked out of their home, lost her job, and went back to the man who almost killed her last summer. She promised to be at my baby shower and I even offered her money to help me around the house. She never showed up. My husband and I are pretty much done with her, since she promises so much but never delivers. I don’t think she should be at the hospital when my son is born. She’ll just be another flaky person he doesn’t need in his life. I don’t want to regret that decision. But I also don’t know if she’s sober either.
—Need to Sober Up Sister-In-Law