50 Toxic Family Quotes To Help You Heal

These toxic family quotes remind us that toxic traits can exist in the homes we live in and be shared by those who are related to us.

Relationship author Charles Orlando noted that “You don’t let go of a bad relationship because you stop caring about them. You let go because you start caring about yourself.”

Living in a toxic environment is like surviving an oil spill.

You may make it out and even make it to a new environment, but the residue of the toxic relationships remains like a coating.

This can be especially difficult during the holiday season when people traditionally get together with family members.

Toxic family conditions can manifest in infinite ways as family roles vary.

Part of loving ourselves fully means having the courage to care about our well-being.

Sometimes this means removing or untethering ourselves from relationships that are toxic.

Check out our most popular quote article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily inspiration.

Check out our entire collection of motivational quotes here. 

Short toxic family quotes

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

2. “You are not part of a toxic family if you walk away.” — Michelle Meleen

You will also enjoy our article on toxic people quotes.

3. “A toxic family is even worse than a toxic relationship.” — Rohan Chouhan

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

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

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

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

8. “Parent-child relationships aren’t created at birth; they’re created in life.” — Anonymous

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

10. “You may be my family, but I won’t let you get away with your toxic behavior.” — Anonymous

You will also enjoy our article on naughty quotes.

Toxic family quotes about the dysfunction some face 

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

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

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

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

15. “The more dysfunctional, the more some family members seek to control the behavior of others.” — David W. Earle

16. “When you don’t come from a healthy family, you do your best to ensure a healthy one comes from you.” — Steve Maraboli

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

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

19. “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

 20. “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

You will also enjoy our article on family quotes.

Cutting the toxicity out of your life quotes

21. “Things only get better when you cut off the worst.” — Anonymous

22. “Your heart knows when you have given too many chances.” — Anonymous

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

30. “You have the right to put up a fence between you and your family, and the choice whether to include a gate.” — Michelle Meleen

31. “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

Lighter toxic family quotes

32. “Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops.” — Cary Grant

33. “The human race is one big dysfunctional family.” — Robert Barron

34. “Insanity is hereditary; you get it from your children.” — Sam Levenson

35. “Families are like fudge—mostly sweet with a few nuts.” — Les Dawson

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

37. “You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you as you are to them.” — Desmond Tutu

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

39. “I have to endure one more holiday with my family, I might have to become a Jehovah’s Witness.” — Anonymous

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

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

You will also enjoy our article on toxic relationships quotes.

Toxic Family quotes that make you think

42. “You didn’t choose your family, but you can choose how to define family.” — Anonymous

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

44. “Saying ‘no’ to a toxic family member shows that you understand what family truly means.” — Anonymous

45. “When someone is rude and toxic, remember it’s not about you. It’s a reflection of their inner state.” — Anonymous

46. “The longer we ignore red flags, pretend they don’t exist, the more we disconnect from ourselves.” — Sherrie Campbell

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

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

49. “If the family you choose 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

50. “Sometimes, it’s necessary to temporarily distance yourself physically from toxic family members for the sake of your well being if they prove to be too toxic to be around them.” — Anonymous

What to do if you are dealing with toxicity

The culture of toxic family conditions can be difficult to overcome.

There is no way to generically describe toxic relationships with our families.

Everyone has different family conditions, and the dynamics are as varied as people are.

It can be as obvious as physical or verbal abuse, or it can be subtle and unaddressed where toxic family members are in business together.

As difficult as it may be, sometimes we need space from toxic family members.

It does not mean we do not love them.

It just means we care enough about ourselves to not allow destructive or toxic energies to continually impact or influence us.

Of course, we are going to be there for our family members to the best of our ability, but sometimes we have to create boundaries so that we can stay healthy.

How do you deal with toxic family members? Let us know in the comments