Feeling left out by half siblings after they started families

It really hits you in the gut when you realize your own siblings are building a life together, and you’re just... not part of it anymore.

My parents divorced years ago and both remarried. My dad had a son and daughter with his new wife, and growing up, we all got along pretty well. But as we got older, the cracks started to show. Lately, it's been impossible to ignore how much they push me away. It really escalated last year when my brother had his first child. I wasn’t invited to the baby’s christening or his wedding. Their reason? I’m “just” their half-sister.

It’s been heartbreaking. There’s been no big fight or falling out. I've tried everything—offering to babysit, inviting them over for dinner, sending little gifts. They always have an excuse. Either they're sick or "too busy." Maybe they just don’t like me, I don’t know. But I genuinely don't understand what I did wrong.

To me, family is family, no matter if we share both parents or just one. And the thing is, we don't really have any other close relatives here. Our grandparents have all passed away, and the only cousins we have are living on the other side of the world. It’s basically just us. Or at least, that’s what I thought.

Sometimes it feels like people look down on half-siblings, like we're somehow less “real” family. I had a long talk with a friend about it once, and she said she understood why my siblings might distance themselves—because, in her words, "half-siblings aren't the same as full siblings, and people naturally feel closer to their real family." Hearing that just crushed me even more.

Tonight has been rough. I saw on social media that they’re all together again for a family dinner. Laughing, posting pictures, acting like I don’t even exist. I didn’t get a call, a text, nothing.

Has anyone else been through something like this? I'm sitting here feeling so alone tonight, wondering if this feeling will ever pass. 💔