Old family wounds have a way of reopening during holiday visits.

So when an adult son tried to protect his mom from a hostile sister-in-law by cutting off financial help for her annual trip, he thought he was drawing a boundary.

Instead, he faced accusations of being overly controlling.

Keep reading for the full story.

AITA for trying to stop my mom from visiting my brother?

My mom (77) takes an annual trip out of state to visit my brother (58) and his family. The trip is the same time every year, and she stays for about 5 days.

My SiL does not like us. Never has. She never explicitly said so, but her behavior and attitude does.

She’s made her distaste quite clear on multiple occasions.

For example, she constantly frowns, gives short, curt answers when we try to strike up a conversation, or walks away like she doesn’t hear us. Little things like that.

She and my brother have been married for about 30 years, and my now deceased sister and I (54) gave up on a relationship years ago.

During the last visit, the simmering tension reached a boiling point.

Anyway, when my mom went a couple of years ago, she and my brother got into an argument, and she told him that he could get the heck out and “take his mammy with him.” My mom was extremely hurt and upset.

When I heard this, I called my brother and he confirmed it. The argument was a bit intense because I felt like he should have stood up for our mom.

So now he tries to forbid her from visiting at all.

Anyway, I demanded that mom never set foot in his house again. I told her that if he wants to see her, he can travel to us. (Mom lives with me).

But his mother can’t be deterred.

FF to 2025 and she’s planning her trip, told me when she’s planning to go. I looked at her like she grew an extra head and told her that I wasn’t going to buy her round-trip ticket and to get there the best way she can.

She bought a Greyhound ticket and took the 16-hour ride. 🥴 I felt bad and paid for her ticket home.

Now his mother is mad at him for getting in the way of her plans.

Mom won’t stop fussing at me for not buying her ticket in the first place, but says she enjoyed seeing the countryside. The SiL is still mean.

Anyway, AITA for trying to forbid her from visiting my brother and refusing to buy her plane ticket?

Independence doesn’t expire past age 70.

Redditors weren’t so sympathetic.

At the end of the day, he needs to let his mother make her own decisions.

This commenter isn’t about this controlling attitude.

He really should mind his own business.

He can’t prevent her from taking the trip, but he certainly doesn’t have to bankroll it.

At the end of the day, he just wanted to protect his mom, but maybe his mom didn’t need protecting.

If you liked that story, read this one about grandparents who set up a college fund for their grandkid because his parents won’t, but then his parents want to use the money to cover sibling’s medical expenses.