AND BOOZE DOESN’T HELP –  

June 27, 2022 – Did you know that women who have a healthy relationship with their fathers tend to grow into healthier, happier and stronger women?  Unfortunately, for many of us, those healthy relationships don’t exist.

If you are one of the lucky ones, good for you! If you are one of the rest, like me, then you know what I mean. My father was absent. He was one of those dads who worked a lot and left the child care to my mother. He was around but not present. And when he was present, he was very sarcastic. Whenever I told him about a goal or accomplishment, he just put me down, saying I wouldn’t be able to do it.

My parents divorced when I was 13 and he found a new wife who hated me and they moved to Australia. Since then, he has repeatedly chosen his wife over me which, in combination with the sarcasm, left me feeling abandoned and unloved. It was the same for my sister.

Since then, my sister and I both have been in a series of relationships with unhealthy men. We are drawn to men like our father, ones who we can “fix” and hopefully make up for the pain that our dad caused.  have a habit of choosing men who lie. As a result, I can never trust them and that leads to a downward spiral in the relationship that always leaves me heartbroken.

I did this over and over until I finally started understanding that my relationship with my dad was what the cause and that I didn’t have to bring that baggage into my relationships. 

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