How do I explain to my in-laws that bullying a teenager is unacceptable?

Dear Prudence: My teenage daughter has become addicted to “smellmaxing” a fashionable trend of drenching oneself in vast quantities of cologne.

My in-laws are delightfully direct, to the point of open rudeness, and did not hold back.

My daughter was incredibly distressed but my husband and his family have largely dismissed that, arguing that she needs to toughen up.

Dear Prudie: Ask your old work friend if it’s okay to meet for lunch or dinner.

Don’t be evasive about the situation with your old friend, but be kind and direct with the wife, rather than avoidant.

Your friends who feel like they deserve’ to know each other’s’ secrets instead of working to earn that trust are worth hanging onto.

She was supposed to come spend Christmas with my sister, sister, and me, but did not show up.

She has been to treatment for trauma twice over the last few years , mainly to deal with the significant abuse she suffered at the hands of my father and her own mother.

I am hurt and confused by her apparent lack of interest in my life and her granddaughter.

Part of me wants to mend the relationship so Betty can get to know her and have a connection to her roots.