When I married my husband, I expected the usual ups and downs, but I never imagined I’d constantly have to defend my intentions. From the start, my mother-in-law has made it clear she thinks I married her son for his money. At first, I tried to brush it off with humor, but her comments became a pattern that wore me down.

Every chance she gets, she drops a remark about how nice it must be to have everything paid for. It’s almost like she waits for an audience, eager to make me look like I’m just coasting while her son supports me.

I usually stay quiet, not wanting to ruin family gatherings with conflict, but during a recent dinner, I finally hit my breaking point.

She made another jab, this time in front of everyone, about how great it must be to have a husband who pays all the bills. The room went silent as awkward laughter followed, but I could feel the heat rising in my face.

Instead of staying quiet this time, I looked her straight in the eye and said, “Funny, because I just finished paying off his student loans.” The table fell into stunned silence, her smile froze, and for the first time, she had no words. My husband squeezed my hand under the table, but I kept my gaze fixed on her, making sure she knew I wasn’t afraid to stand up for myself.

It felt empowering to finally speak up, but I also found myself wondering what comes next. I know this won’t magically change her opinion of me, and I’m bracing for more comments down the road. But it was important to me to make it clear that I’m not the person she paints me to be.

So, now I’m torn. Did I do the right thing by calling her out in front of everyone, or did I make things worse? What would you have done in my shoes?