Originally Posted by dbh

As I have posted previously, I am an adult child of an alcoholic. My father was an alcoholic for almost his entire life and I'm familiar with the subtle and not so subtle damage that comes from having an active addict in your life.

When I was younger, I remember often minimizing the affects my father's alcoholism had on me. I would tell myself how "lucky" I was that my father's drinking wasn't that bad. I would tell myself how "lucky" I was to escape being truly affected by our dysfunctional home. My positive spin on things protected me from having to deal with all the negative emotions that were building inside of me.

Life with an addict is awful and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. It makes you crazy and you start to think that unacceptable behavior is okay or justifiable.

I just have to say that it's not okay to find someone you care about od'ing and it's not okay to have your boyfriend steal from your mother.

I'm sorry that both of you are experiencing this and I hope that you find a way to put your own health and sanity first.

These are things I wish someone said to me when I was in my twenties.

Thanks for letting me share.

Hugs,

db