How do I handle obnoxious visitors?

Analemma

I have noticed this phenomenon in real life.  Everybody seems to want a piece of me.  I'm grateful that people ask about me.  But there's that morbid curiosity, where it used to be casual, and you knew they didn't really give a shit when they said "how are you?"  There's one woman that's a fairly new acquaintance - a year - and she really wants to be my new best friend.  But she wants me to be her therapist, to be the one she tells her troubles to.  Her daughter goes to the local college and she actually suggested I should call her daughter to chat because I'd be a great second mom for her.  Are you kidding me?  What I really feel is that there's not enough of me to go around to my family.  I really don't want more people with baggage they need to share.  But my immediate family has been great, and that's what I really want.  My inlaws haven't acted like they care much, and that's just as well, too.

I do think perhaps I'm more sensitive, so maybe people aren't really acting worse, I'm just noticing it more.

caseygee

Thank you for posting this and for all the great answers.  I am stage IV but am still up and kicking.  I am dealing with all the visitor issues you mentioned.  I find too that everone seems to think thet are entitled to every bit of graphic info about both my medical and emotional condition.  Last night at 10:30 p.m. a neighbor "saw my lights on", came to my patio door, practically pushed her way past my husband and started telling me I was keeping things from her!  I finally told her she had to leave and called her today and told her she was never to drop in again and that if she cared she'd do what I had asked and that if she didn't, then I'd rather not see her again--pain meds do make you stronger!

 At this point in our lives or the lives of our loved ones, WE GET TO BE PRIORITY #1.

i