"WE ARE BEING HARASSED BY OUR
NEIGHBOUR, WHAT CAN WE DO?"
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Therapist
A is currently unavailable |
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I'm very sorry that you are
having such a bad experience with your neighbour & can
understand that you are worried about what to do next.
It is of course always difficult to complain about a
neighbour in a small hamlet, but I wonder if you could
perhaps talk to anyone nearby who might have known her
before her husband died & find out if she has any family
contacts who could be alerted that she seems lonely,
distressed & is being aggressive towards you?
Otherwise it is quite often useful to go to your local
mairie & ask to have a quiet word with the maire as they
often have considerable influence & local knowledge, &
could give some good advice, especially if you go with a
genuine concern for someone who might be showing signs
of mental health illness. I know she is English, but
presumably she is also a local resident & pays her taxes
as do the French residents?
Perhaps it would help if you could write out a
chronological list with rough dates & descriptions of
the incidents you have mentioned so that the maire could
get a clear idea of the sequence of events & then at
least you will have lodged your concerns with someone
official without having to take the formal step of
complaining to the gendarmes - as you said you do need
positive proof for that to be effective. It may well
come to that eventually if your neighbour causes any
more damage, but hopefully you might be able to get help
before anything else happens?
A last thought is to see if there are any British expat
groups in your nearby town who might be able to give
advice in a case like this as it must be very worrying
to feel that you are the target of such animosity & it
might help to talk it through with others who might have
had similar experiences?
Please let us know how you get on as any information you
can give could be helpful for any others along in the
same situation. |
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It sounds
as though your neighbour is suffering a lot and this is
causing her to behave in a way that is threatening. You
write about an incident between her cat and your dog.
Were things OK before that incident? I wonder what it is
that makes her hate English people, especially as she is
English. This could mean that somewhere she also hates
herself. You mention that you tried to help her when her
husband died. Would it be possible for you to try and
approach her again and see how she reacts?
On a more practical level, I would suggest keeping a
diary of the incidents and of their time and date so
that you have some evidence of what is happening. How is
your neighbour with the other neighbours? From what you
say about her, it does sound as though she needs some
sort of psychological help and it might be worthwhile
your talking to your GP to see what he can suggest. It
might also be worthwhile seeking legal advice as to what
you can so about the situation. |
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