I’m so sorry, that sounds awful. I did get lucky in the sense that I had one good enough parent, which is honestly probably while I’m still alive and doing alright. I still talk to my Mom on a weekly basis. She had a lot of unwinding to do after her divorce. It’s tricky to get an abusive narcissist out of your head. They have a way of living there.

I hope you’re doing better! Your perseverance is admirable as hell.

Sometimes getting through adversity and hardship can make us into better, tougher, and more empathetic adults than we would’ve been if our childhoods had been easier. I hope that’s the case for you.

Any good memories of my Dad are overwritten by the child abuse. I would’ve been better off being raised by a single mother. Today is… complicated.