Dad Praised For Divorcing Wife After His Stepkids 'Bully' His Daughter

The father, who is a widower, shared that he met his wife four years ago. He has a daughter from his previous marriage, and his wife has two daughters of her own. All of the girls are close in age, being 11, 12, and 13.

"My stepdaughters were fine with my daughter at first. Of course they didn't just call her sister magically or treat her the same right away but they were nice," he wrote. However, his wife's ex-husband doesn't necessarily like the Reddit user's daughter.

"A grown a** man called my 10-year-old a fat repulsive pig, a w*ore, and the reason abortion was invented (to list only a few). The girls have called her dumb, they have mocked her for being shy and introverted," he wrote.

The dad shared he spoke with the girls and even tried to keep them separate. He enrolled his own daughter in therapy and tried his best to protect her. But, the girls still went after her. So, he made a difficult decision and he and his daughter moved out.

Now, his wife's family has been reaching out to him saying he has to come back for the sake of his stepdaughters.

"Ever since I filed for the divorce my wife's family have been telling me how much my stepdaughters need me, how badly they need to see a healthy and good father figure in their lives, and that I will destroy them if I leave. How they're important and I need to prioritize them," he said.

"I told them they are not more important than my daughter. Outrage ensued and I was asked how I could say that. They said my wife was prioritizing my daughter and being loved by her should be enough for her to understand her sisters need me to stay in their lives. And I am an a**hole for saying their granddaughters are not special," he wrote.

Reddit users online shared the dad absolutely did the right thing to protect his daughter and stop her from being traumatized and bullied even further by her stepsisters. Others said that if he stayed, he wouldn't have been the "good father figure" everyone said the girls needed.

Some people asked why he mother never disciplined her own kids for bullying her stepdaughter and making her so upset. The Reddit user shared that she did, but their father continued to spew hate to them, reversing the lessons that the wife was trying to teach.

"As a MOTHER, knowing theirs is gone, your wife should be like a lioness protecting what should BE HER BABY NOW. She made vows to you, and by extension, your child. I hope her own kids figure out how to survive, because they've got nothing in their favor," someone wrote.

"Big props to you OP for taking it this far. Most men wouldn't have threatened it. It's also really weird how she couldn't discipline her own biological daughters to create a healthier environment. Everyone's pleading to stop the divorce, but no one tried to prevent the bullying, which caused the divorce," shared another.

"You ARE demonstrating to them exactly what a healthy and good father figure would do. You are prioritizing your daughter and protecting her from her tormentors. That is EXACTLY what a good father figure would do," one person commented.

Many called the dad "awesome" and amazing for not only stepping up for his daughter but also saving her from what could have turned into years and years of abuse and torment.

"I want to throw attention to the fact that she doesn't want you to leave because SHE loves you and wants a life with you, but because she wants you to provide for HER kids. This only shows you did the right move," shared another.

"It's hard to believe that your wife's family could know the details of what they've put your daughter through and still be outraged that you're leaving. Those "two young girls" were being horrible - is that the kind of "special" they're supporting," questioned Reddit users.

When it comes down to it, the consensus online was that the dad did the right thing for his daughter. He stepped up for her at 12, when she was struggling, and even walked away from love for her. That's a true dad.