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Old 05-05-2016, 02:55 PM
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Centered3
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Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 936
I'm in a similar boat as you.

I remind myself how healthy I have been becoming since separating myself from my toxic abusive parents. I use Mother's Day as an excuse to mother myself. I do small things that make me happy--take a walk and window shop, buy a fancy drink at one of those coffee shops, go bird watching, anything to take my mind off the negativity of my past.

I know it's hard but you MUST ignore those people who do not understand your situation and say things like "You only have one set of parents", etc. It is extremely hard for people from normal families to wrap their heads around the fact that some parents are just very sick and/or abusive. I usually just smile and say, "I'm not close to my parents" and I know that makes me look bad, so I've been lately saying "My parents were abusive" and that usually shuts people up fast. My therapist says I could also make a joke out of it, like, "I'm not in touch with them and it's a good thing."

I knew a hairdresser once who was no contact with her parents, and the way she said it was with complete and utter confidence and in a no-b.s. sort of way. It stopped anyone in their tracks to even think about asking her why, or even think about her being an awful daughter for doing that. I think I will try to do that. She was standing firm in her truth. I respect that. How can you not?

I struggle with this a lot, though. I sometimes end up babbling like crazy as a way to defend my actions and show people what I mean. But I don't have to answer to anyone, and neither do you. Just keep living your truth and be good to yourself.

I used to be extremely depressed on Mother's Day, especially witnessing all the mothers and daughters going out and doing things together. Even commercials or Mother's Day cards in the stores would trigger me to full blown self-pity depression. These days, I can actually smile when I see a mother and daughter enjoying each other's company and be happy for them. But it took a long time in recovery to get to this place. My step work helped with it a lot, as it helped me see that some people are just spiritually sick and even though it always felt personal, the way they treated me said more about THEM than it does about me.

It still angers me that there's a stigma out there that it's not socially acceptable to go no contact with your own parents. Jeez I wish Oprah would write an article about it so it'd become socially acceptable already!! (haha)

Hope sharing my experience helps.
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