200 Toxic Family Quotes to Heal & Let Go of Your Pain

It’s everybody’s wish to be born to a family that loves and supports them, but that isn’t always the case. So if you’re part of a toxic family and you seem like it’s all pressing on your shoulder, then maybe this quote will cheer you up and get you going.

Toxic Family Quotes

1. Family is supposed to be our safe haven. Very often, it’s the place we find the deepest heartache. – Lyanla Vansant

2. “If it’s hurting you more than it’s healing you, love yourself enough to let it go.” – Sherrie Campbell

3. “Biology shouldn’t be destiny.” – Anonymous

4. It’s not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons. – Jonathan Schiller

5. “Wherever there is a major deficit in parental love, the child will—in all likelihood—respond to the deficit by assuming itself to be the cause of the deficit, thereby developing an unrealistically negative self-image.” – Sherrie Campbell

6. “Toxic family relationships spoil all other relationships unless you remove the poison before it’s too late.” – Anonymous

7. “Not everyone deserves full access to you, including toxic family members.” – Anonymous

8. “You were being lied to so many times that you know who not to trust. That’s not trusting issues, that’s lessons learned.” – Anonymous

9. “A good family will see your boundaries and move around them, a toxic family won’t even realize they’re there.” – Anonymous

10. A child should never feel as if they need to earn a mother’s love. – Sherrie Campbell

11. “You are allowed to terminate your relationship with toxic family members.” You are allowed to walk away from people who hurt you. You are allowed to be angry, selfish, and unforgiving. You don’t owe anyone an explanation for taking care of you. ” – Anonymous

12. “Sometimes you have to accept the fact that some people can’t handle you doing well, having the peace they don’t, or knowing how to receive kindness.” Let them go. – Lavon Fr

13. A toxic mother talks but never listens; she gives advice but never takes any. – Sherrie Campbell

14. “It’s not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons.” – Jonathan Schiller

15. “Cutting toxic people off doesn’t make you a bad person, selfish, or weak. Cutting toxic people off means you value your integrity over what other people think about you.” – Unknown

16. “You may feel guilty for leaving your family behind, but you’ll never regret moving forward.” – Anonymous

17. The only way to win in a toxic relationship is to leave.

18. You can’t change someone who can’t see an issue in their actions. – Anonymous

19. “Fear of breaking family loyalty is one of the greatest stumbling blockages to recovery. Yet, until we admit certain things we would rather excuse or deny, we cannot truly begin to put the past in the past and leave it there once and for all. Unless we do that, we cannot even begin to think of having a future that is fully ours, untethered to the past, and we will be destined to repeat it.” – Ronald Allen Schulz

20. “When we are raised in toxic families, we often go through a time period, and for some of us, a lifetime of repeating the toxic patterns we were raised in with other people in our lives. We do this until we decide we’ve had enough pain and choose to genuinely examine our patterns and stop the craziness for good.” – Sherrie Campbell

21. “Ending the toxic cycle within your own life isn’t easy. When you don’t come from a healthy family, you do your best to ensure a healthy one comes from you.” – Steve Maraboli

22. “When you walk away from a toxic family, you begin the journey of finding your true people.” – Anonymous

23. “If you can stand up to your family, you can stand up to anyone.” – Anonymous

24. “Toxic people condition you to believe that the problem isn’t the abuse itself, but instead your reactions to the abuse.” – Anonymous

25. “You don’t get to choose your family, but you do get to choose how they’re allowed to treat you.” – Anonymous

26. You can miss a person every day and still be glad that they are no longer in your life. – Tara Westover

27. “It’s okay to cut ties with toxic friends and family you’ve got to prioritize your own well-being.” – Brenden Dilley

28. “Family or not I will cut you off. That saying “but that’s family” means nothing if a family is toxic and means you no good.” – Morgan Sharee

29. When you don’t come from a healthy family, you do your best to ensure a healthy one comes from you. – Steve Maraboli

30. “Toxic mothers are image-oriented rather than love-oriented.” – Sherrie Campbell

31. “Love them from a distance. Pray for them, wish them well, but don’t allow them to abuse you.” – Kimber Waul

32. “The path to freedom is illuminated by the bridges you have burned, adorned by the ties you have cut, and cleared by the drama you have left behind. Let go. Be free.” – Steve Maraboli

33. “In the process of letting go, you will lose many things from the past but you will find yourself.” – Deepak Chopra

34. “Cutting people off doesn’t have limits.” If they are causing you stress, you can get cut off too. Eliminate any negativity in your circle. ” – thegoodvibe.co

35. “It’s okay to cut toxic family members out of your life. Blood ain’t thicker than peace of mind.” – Anonymous

36. It’s not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons. – Jonathan Schiller

37. “Toxic family members will see expressions of forgiveness as weaknesses to exploit.” Don’t give in to their tactics this way. If you need to forgive them for your own healing, then do it, but keep it to yourself. ” – Sherrie Campbell

38. “You don’t let go of a bad relationship because you stop caring about them. You let go because you start caring about yourself.” – Charles Orlando

39. “Families are homes built on a foundation of trust and love. A toxic family can never be home because the foundation doesn’t exist.” – Anonymous

40. “Humans can be so ugly sometimes that the ones you love the most would only love to see you fall. It’s a cruel world.” – Sidney Albury

41. “Sometimes you need to give up on people, not because you don’t care, but because they don’t.” – Unknown

42. Words don’t cover up actions. – Unknown

43. “My friend, you are not alone. No matter what you’ve suffered, the abuse was not your fault. You didn’t cause someone to hurt you. Not as an innocent child, a teenager, or an adult. Let that sink in. It’s not your fault. ” – Dana Arcuri

44. No matter what you’ve suffered, the abuse was not your fault. Not as an innocent child, a teenager, or as an adult. – Dana Arcuri

Unsupportive Family Quotes

45. “If the family you chose before your birth no longer supports your path towards fulfilling your true destiny, it is never too late to find a new tribe.” – Anthon St. Maarten

46. “A child should never feel as if they need to earn a mother’s love.” – Sherrie Campbell

47. “Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.” – Deborah Reber

48. Toxic parents care more about how you make them look than how you actually feel.- Unknown

49. “Let’s get out of the habit of telling people, “that’s still your mom, your dad, or your sister.” Toxic is toxic. You are allowed to walk away from people that constantly hurt you.” – @bynnada

50. “Toxic family relationships spoil all other relationships unless you remove the poison before it’s too late.” – Unknown

51. “You don’t have to leave your whole family in the past, just those who don’t deserve a place in your future.” – Unknown

52. “You can miss a person every day and still be glad that they are no longer in your life.” – Tara Westover

53. “It always amazes me how swiftly problems can be solved, once you start cutting things off people.” – Joe Abercrombie

54. “Blood doesn’t make you family. Some of the most demonic and demeaning people in your life share your DNA.” – Temi Ade

55. “Family is where you’re meant to be most free, don’t let blood chain you down.” – Michelle Meleen

56. “Do not be waylaid by a toxic family Whatsapp group. You fought hard to emerge as your own person in real life. Do not succumb to this new medium that replicates all the sad, toxic hierarchies of broken families. Walk out. Do it now.” – Itayi Garande

57. Ask yourself, “will you do this to your family?” If not, why let them do this to you?-Unknown

58. “Because I love you” is not the reason for manipulation or abuse.-Unknown

59. “Family is supposed to be our safe haven. Very often, it’s the place we find the deepest heartache.” – Lyanla Vansant

60. “Families are like fudge – mostly sweet with a few nuts.” – Les Dawson

61. “Let negative people live their negative lives with their negative minds.”― Moosa Rahat

62. “You cannot expect to live a positive life if you hang with negative people.” — Joel Osteen

63. “Remember…Whoever is trying to bring you down is already below you.” —Ziad K. Abdelnour

64. “Weeding out the harmful influences should become the norm, not the exception.” ― Carlos Wallace

65. “Family is where you’re meant to be most free, don’t let blood chain you down.” — Michelle Meleen

66. “Toxic family relationships spoil all other relationships unless you remove the poison before it’s too late.” — Unknown

67. “When you walk away from a toxic family, you begin the journey of finding your true people.”— Anonymous

68. “You may feel guilty for leaving your family behind, but you’ll never regret moving forward.” — Anonymous

69. “Not everyone deserves full access to you, including toxic family members.”— Anonymous

70. “You don’t have to prove your self-worth to receive love and respect. Toxic people will never see that.” — Unknown

71. “Some people in your family will only love you if you fit into their mold. Don’t change who you are to please them.”— Unknown

72. “There is healing in telling. There is healing in exposing abuse. There is healing in being truthful. There is healing in knowing you are not to blame. There is healing in standing up for yourself. There is healing in setting boundaries. There is healing in self-love. Hold onto hope that you will recover.”— Dana Arcuri

73. “A family can be the bane of one’s existence. A family can also be most of the meaning of one’s existence. I don’t know whether my family is bane or meaning, but they have surely gone away and left a large hole in my heart.”— Keri Hulme

74. “If the family you chose before your birth no longer supports your path towards fulfilling your true destiny, it is never too late to find a new tribe.” – Anthon St. Maarten

75. “Families and their problems go on and on, and they aren’t solved; they’re dealt with.” – Roger Ebert

76. “Like all the best families, we have our share of eccentricities, of impetuous and wayward youngsters and of family disagreements.” – Queen Elizabeth II

77. “Insanity is hereditary; you get it from your children.” –Sam Levenson

78. “All the men in my family were bearded and most of the women.” –C. Fields

79. “My friend, you are not alone. No matter what you’ve suffered, the abuse was not your fault. You didn’t cause someone to hurt you. Not as an innocent child, teenager, nor as an adult. Let that sink in. It’s not your fault.” — Dana Arcuri

80. “If you can stand up to your family, you can stand up to anyone.” — Anonymous

81. “Some of the most poisonous people come disguised as family.”— Steve Maraboli

82. “People closest to us hurt us the most.” — Unknown

83. “Mean family members will gaslight you and make you question your reality.” — Unknown

84. “How you choose to feel today should not be dependent on others.”— Anthon St. Maarten

85. “See, I think there are roads that lead us to each other. But in my family, there were no roads – just underground tunnels. I think we all got lost in those underground tunnels. No, not lost. We just lived there.” — Benjamin Alire Sáenz

86. “Unsupportive family is your weakness, so leave the ones that hurt you.” –Unknown

87. “My family never supports my dreams. I feel like a broken piece of junk.”–Unknown

88. “Always stay up strong, even when you don’t get support from the family. To succeed in life, you need to leave behind the ones who hinder your progress.” –Unknown

89. “I may be the black sheep of the family, but at least I am me and not a fictitious white sheep I am not.” –Samuel Zulu

90. “You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.” –Anne Lamott

91. “When you notice someone does something toxic the first time, don’t wait for the second time before you address it.” –Shahida Arabi

92. “You don’t have to leave your whole family in the past, but just those who don’t deserve a place in your future.”— Unknown

93. “Toxic people condition you to believe that the problem isn’t the abuse itself, but instead your reactions to the abuse.”— Anonymous

94. “You were being lied to so many times that you know who not to trust. That’s not trusting issues, that’s lessons learned.” — Anonymous

95. “Just because you’re related to someone doesn’t mean you have to tolerate their toxic behavior.” — Unknown

96. “Toxic family members can drain you emotionally and make you doubt your own worth.” — Unknown

97. “Some family members will only reach out when they need something, and then disappear when you need them.”— Unknown

Dysfunctional Family Quotes

98. “Dysfunctional families have sired a number of pretty good actors.” –Gene Hackman

99. “People talk about dysfunctional families; I’ve never seen any other kind.” – Sue Grafton

100. “We all come from dysfunctional families, and these days I guess that’s pretty normal.” –Carnie Wilson

101. “I come from a dysfunctional family, so my view of parents and parenting used to be highly mixed.” – Tamora Pierce

102. “Weddings are never about the bride and groom. Weddings are public platforms for dysfunctional families.” – Lisa Kleypas

103. “The current relationship between companies and the workforce is like marrying into a dysfunctional family. Only you don’t get to escape when the holiday meal is over.” – Bill Jensen

104. “If you grew up in a dysfunctional family, then there is really no hope for you to have a good relationship. That is another myth that we have to throw off so that we can get into what I call Reality.” – Gary Chapman

105. “In my family, as in all dysfunctional families, instead of parents who act as strong and nurturing role models for their children, you get these needy people who use their children. I was the kid who tried to take on the marriage.” – John Bradshaw

106. “Your whole being is involved in taking care of someone else, worrying about what they think of you, how they treat you, how you can make them treat you better. Right now, everyone in the world seems to think that they are codependent and that they come from dysfunctional families. They call it codependency. I call it the human condition.” –Cynthia Heimel

107. “Sometimes you need to give up on people, not because you don’t care, but because they don’t.” — Unknown

108. “You don’t get to choose your family, but you do get to choose how they’re allowed to treat you.”— Anonymous

109. “A good family will see your boundaries and move around them, a toxic family won’t even realize they’re there.” — Anonymous

110. “No matter how much you want people to be there for you, some are just not cut out for it.”— Unknown

111. “A toxic family member can make you feel like you’re the problem when in reality, it’s their toxic behavior that’s causing the issues.”— Unknown

112. “Fake family members will always put their interests above yours, even if it means hurting you in the process.”— Unknown

113. “It always amazes me how swiftly problems can be solved, once you start cutting things off people.” – Joe Abercrombie

114. “Love them from a distance. Pray for them, wish them well, but don’t allow them to abuse you.” –Kimber Waul

115. “Family too can be cut off if it proves to be too toxic to be around.” –Samuel Zulu

116. “Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops.” –Cary Grant

117. “We don’t get to choose our family, but we can choose our friends. With courage, we can weed out narcissistic people. We can focus on those who do appreciate us, love us, and treat us with respect.” ―Dana Arcuri

118. “My encouragement: delete the energy vampires from your life, clean out all complexity, build a team around you that frees you to fly, remove anything toxic, and cherish simplicity. Because that’s where genius lives.” — Robin S. Sharma

119. “No matter how much you love the person, you cannot change them. You may influence them, but at the end of the day, they must decide for themselves.” — Robert E. Baines Jr.

120. “An entire sea of water can’t sink a ship unless it gets inside the ship. Similarly, the negativity of the world can’t put you down unless you allow it to get inside you.” —Goi Nasu

121. “The path to freedom is illuminated by the bridges you have burned, adorned by the ties you have cut, and cleared by the drama you have left behind. Let go. Be free.” — Steve Maraboli

122. “Toxic mothers are image-oriented rather than love-oriented.” — Sherrie Campbell

123. “Sometimes you have to accept the fact that some people can’t handle you doing well, having the peace they don’t, or knowing how to receive kindness. Let them go.” — Lavon Fr

124. “A toxic family member can be worse than a poison in your life.”— Unknown

125. “Toxic family members will always find a way to bring you down. Surround yourself with people who uplift and support you.” — Unknown

126. “It’s better to have a small, supportive family than a large, toxic one full of fake people.”— Unknown

Toxic Family Members Quotes

127. A toxic mother talks but never listens, and she gives advice but never takes any.” – Sherrie Campbell

128. “A toxic family is even worse than a toxic relationship.” – Rohan Chouhan

129. “Let’s get out of the habit of telling people that’s still your mom, your dad, or your sister. Toxic is toxic. You are allowed to walk away from people that constantly hurt you.” – Bynnada

130. “Letting go doesn’t mean that you don’t care about someone anymore. It’s just realizing that the only person you really have control over is yourself.” – Deborah Reber

131. “Just because they are your family doesn’t mean that they know what’s best for you or your life.” –Samuel Zulu

132. “As important as it is to learn how to deal with different kinds of people, truly toxic people will never be worth your time and energy – and they take a lot of each. Toxic people create unnecessary complexity, strife, and, worst of all, stress.” — Travis Bradberry

133. “Letting go of toxic people in your life is a big step in loving yourself.” – Hussein Nishah

134. “Handling toxic people is not an art; they will be the victim of their own toxicity” ―S. Jagadeesh Kumar

135. “Maturity is understanding when and how to draw boundaries with toxic family members.” — Anonymous

136. “It’s okay to cut ties with toxic friends and family you’ve got to prioritize your own well-being.” — Brenden Dilley

137. “You are allowed to terminate your relationship with toxic family members. You are allowed to walk away from people who hurt you. You are allowed to be angry, selfish, and unforgiving. You don’t owe anyone an explanation for taking care of you.”— Anonymous

138. “When toxic people can no longer control you, they will try to control how others see you.”— Unknown

139. “Some family members are like two-faced snakes, they’ll pretend to love you to your face and then stab you in the back.” — Unknown

140. “Fake family members will smile in your face and then spread lies about you behind your back.”— Unknown

141. “Her father is a burden she shouldn’t have to carry, but she does. He had made her feel unsafe in the world when his one job was to make her feel protected.”— Krystalle Bianca

142. “Along with the trust issues, one of the hardest parts to deal with is the feeling of not being believed or supported, especially by your own grandparents and extended family.”— Erin Merryn

143. “You can miss a person every day and still be glad that they are no longer in your life.” – Tara Westover

144. “Blood doesn’t make you family. Some of the most demonic and demeaning people in your life share your DNA.” – Temi Ade

145. “It’s okay to cut ties with toxic friends and family; you’ve got to prioritize your own well-being.” – Brenden Dilley

146. “If you attach to the negative behavior of others, it brings you down to their level.” – Guru Singh

147. “You create more space in your life when you turn your excess baggage to garbage.” ― Chinonye J. Chidolue

148. “Don’t let negative and toxic people rent space in your head. Raise the rent and kick them out.” — Robert Tew

149. “It’s amazing how quickly things can turn around when you remove toxic people from your life.” — Robert Tew

150. “When people pressure you to engage in negative decisions and actions, look at them boldly in the eyes and dare them to do good.” ― Edmond Mbiaka

151. “If a negative viewer looks at you with an ugly fiendish eye, find a way and pluck off his eyes, or better still, protect your good image.” ― Michael Bassey Johnson

152. “Every day, you must unlearn the ways that hold you back. You must rid yourself of negativity, so you can learn to fly.” — Leon Brown

153. “Avoid negative people, for they are the greatest destroyers of self-confidence and self-esteem. Surround yourself with people who bring out the best in you!” –Auliq Ice

154. “Surrounding yourself with negative people will only block your way forward. So take those hard decisions and always choose you.” — Anonymous

155. “Family or not I will cut you off. That saying “but that’s family” means nothing if a family is toxic and means you no good.”— Morgan Sharee

156. “If it’s hurting you more than it’s healing you, love yourself enough to let it go.”— Sherrie Campbell

157. “The hardest part about walking away from a toxic family member is the guilt that comes with it.”— Unknown

158. “It’s hard to trust anyone when even your own family can be two-faced and fake.”— Unknown

159. “Toxic family members will try to control your life and make decisions for you, even if it’s not what’s best for you.” — Unknown

Negative Family Quotes

160. “The tradition of passing trauma from generation to generation like a family heirloom stops with you its final inheritor determined to lay it to rest.”— Zara Bas

161. “The happy family is a myth for many.” — Carolyn Spring

162. “Family is supposed to be our safe haven. Very often, it’s the place we find the deepest heartache.” – Lyanla Vansant

163. “In the process of letting go, you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself.” – Deepak Chopra

164. “If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.” –George Bernard Shaw

165. “Making amends is not only saying the words but also being willing to listen to how your behavior caused another’s pain, and then the really hard part, changing behavior.” – David W. Earle

166. “If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.” — Michael Jordan

167. ‘’People who try to bring you down every day aren’t important in your life, so you better treat their opinions as such.” –Terry Mark

168. “It’s okay to cut toxic family members out of your life. Blood ain’t thicker than peace of mind.”— Anonymous

169. “Cutting toxic people off doesn’t make you a bad person, selfish, or weak. Cutting toxic people off means you value your integrity over what other people think about you.”— Unknown

170. “Biology shouldn’t be destiny.” — Anonymous

171. “Toxic people are like cancer, they will eat away at you until there’s nothing left.”— Unknown

172. “Toxic family members will smile to your face and then gossip about you behind your back.” — Unknown

173. “Some family members will only love you if you fit into their definition of ‘normal’. Don’t let them define who you are.”— Unknown

174. “All my life you’ve done nothing but look at me with disregard. As if I was a stranger who came into your house and pooped on your carpet.”— Egle Nutautaite

175. “When faced with choosing between attributing their pain to “being crazy” and having had abusive parents, clients will choose “crazy” most of the time.”— Lisa Ferentz

176. “Toxic people attach themselves like cinder blocks tied to your ankles, and then invite you for a swim in their poisoned waters.” ― John Mark Green

177. “Until you let go of all the toxic people in your life, you will never be able to grow into your fullest potential. Let them go, so you can grow.” – DLQ

178. “Sometimes it’s better to end something & try to start something new than imprison yourself in hoping for the impossible.” – Karen Salmansohn

179. “I have found the best way to deal with a toxic person is to not respond in any other way than monotone voice and a businesslike manner.” ― Jen Grice

Bad Family Quotes

180. “No one forces a person to be negative, and no one forces anyone to be positive. The choice is up to an individual and that person alone.” — Byron Pulsifer

181. “Poisonous relationships can alter our perception. You can spend many years thinking you’re worthless. But you’re not worthless. You’re underappreciated.” — Steve Maraboli

182. “Families are homes built on a foundation of trust and love. A toxic family can never be home because the foundation doesn’t exist.”— Anonymous

183. “Toxic family members will see expressions of forgiveness as weaknesses to exploit. Don’t give in to their tactics this way. If you need to forgive them for your own healing, then do it, but keep it to yourself.”— Sherrie Campbell

184. “When we are raised in toxic families, we often go through a time period, and for some of us, a lifetime of repeating the toxic patterns we were raised in with other people in our lives. We do this until we decide we’ve had enough pain and choose to genuinely examine our patterns and stop the craziness for good.”— Sherrie Campbell

185. “Wherever there is a major deficit in parental love, the child will—in all likelihood—respond to the deficit by assuming itself to be the cause of the deficit, thereby developing an unrealistically negative self-image.” — Sherrie Campbell

186. “Family is supposed to be our safe haven, but sometimes it’s the place where we find the deepest heartache.” — Iyanla Vanzant

187. “Fake family members will try to make you feel guilty for setting boundaries and prioritizing your well-being.” — Unknown

188. “Fake family members will act as if they care, but their actions will always reveal their true intentions.” — Unknown

189. “Never venture near the toxic family war zone without your security detail of angels, spirit guides, and ancestors by your side.”— Anthon St. Maarten

190. “Handling toxic people is not an art; they will be the victim of their own toxicity” ― P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar

191. “You may feel guilty for leaving your family behind, but you’ll never regret moving yourself forward.” – Unknown

192. “Cutting people off doesn’t have limits. Family can get cut off too if they are causing you stress. Eliminate any negativity in your circle.” – Unknown

193. “The best revenge against toxic family members is not fighting back.” – Unknown

194. “The scapegoat is the mentally healthiest member of the toxic family.” – Unknown

195. “If the family you chose before your birth no longer supports your path towards fulfilling your true destiny, it is never too late to find a new tribe.” – Anthon St. Maarten

196. “You don’t let go of a bad relationship because you stop caring about them. You let go because you start caring about yourself.” – Charles Orlando

197. “Leave when you need to. In 10 years, you will look back and realize it’s the best decision ever.” – Unknown

198. “Always stay up strong, even when you don’t get support from the family. To succeed in life, you need to leave behind the ones who hinder your progress.” – Unknown

199. “Let negative people live their negative lives with their negative minds.”― Moosa Rahat

200. “No matter how much you love the person, you cannot change them. You may influence them, but at the end of the day, they must decide for themselves.” — Robert E. Baines Jr.

CSN Team.