Here's a situation that probably sounded way more sympathetic in her head than it did out loud: A 32-year-old woman called The Ramsey Show in December to ask how to tell her mom she resents her financial decisions. The problem? Her mother sold a thriving physical therapy business and her house five years ago to help a long-term boyfriend open a diner. The relationship ended. The money's mostly gone. And now the daughter is upset because mom can't fund her wedding or help buy a house like she once promised.

The caller's mother had built something impressive as a single parent. Three physical therapy clinics, raised two daughters, the whole entrepreneurial success story. Then she met someone, fell in love, and decided to liquidate everything to help him launch a restaurant. The diner actually worked out financially and became profitable pretty quickly. The relationship, not so much.

"They broke off the engagement, and she moved out earlier this year," the caller explained. Now her mom's ex is buying out her share of the business through monthly payments. The catch? It'll take 15 years to get all that capital back. And with it went the promises her mother had made about helping with weddings and real estate.

"She's made promises to me and my sister about being included on a home purchase and planning a wedding," the caller said. "She had the finances to make her fiancé's dreams come true… but now where is that money for our dreams?"

Dave Ramsey, who has never been accused of sugar-coating anything, had thoughts. "You're 32 years old," he said. "You sound like an 18-year-old whining that your mommy didn't give you something."

He painted the mother as a "warrior princess" who built a business from scratch, raised kids solo, made one terrible romantic decision, and paid dearly for it. In his view, this wasn't someone to resent. It was someone to feel heartbroken for.

"She raised you girls from nothing," Ramsey continued. "She built this thing out of the dirt with her hands. And then she lost it. You should be heartbroken for her. Mad at the twerp with the diner. Not worried about yourself."

The caller mentioned she'd recently paid for her mother's 60th birthday trip, which seemed to be part of her case for why she deserved reciprocity. Ramsey wasn't buying it. "And if you don't want to do that, that's fine," he said. "She's not obligated to pay for a 32-year-old woman's wedding as a single mom who lost her money to a bad relationship."

Co-host George Kamel took a slightly gentler approach. He acknowledged that mixed emotions are normal in situations like this, but suggested reframing the conversation. "I think it's okay to communicate two emotions," he told her. "That you're mad and that you're sad. But mainly… sad for her."

Kamel encouraged an honest but respectful conversation, not to guilt-trip her mother, but to clear the air and let both of them move forward without this unspoken resentment hanging over family dinners. "You can honor your mother and have an honest conversation. Then move on."

Ramsey summed it up with his usual bluntness: "Any expectation that she gives you money should turn into gratitude for what she's already done for you." His final take? "Mom did good for a while. Then she messed up. And that's just Mom."

There's something uncomfortable but important here about adult children and parental money. At 60, this woman isn't asking for advice or approval about her financial choices. And legally, emotionally, practically, she doesn't owe her grown daughters a financial safety net or a wedding fund.

Sure, broken promises hurt. And watching a parent make a catastrophically bad investment in a romantic partner is painful, especially when it torches wealth that took decades to build. But if you're 32 and planning a wedding, the uncomfortable truth is this: it's time to figure out your own money.

If the caller is serious about buying a home or funding a wedding without parental support, talking to a financial adviser might actually help. Creating a realistic budget, understanding mortgage options, building savings, these are things that don't require waiting for a 15-year diner buyout to finish paying out.

The Ramsey Show specializes in tough love, and this was a textbook example. Sometimes the advice you need isn't the advice you want to hear. And sometimes the person you're mad at is actually the person you should be worried about.