Hello all.
Joce, Nonnie and all others affected by things that happened in your childhood - it’s impossible to forget as the hurt goes so deep. I don’t feel able to share my experiences (save to say there was no sexual abuse) in an otherwise happy childhood and I can never forget so long as I have a functioning memory (I do wonder about the latter sometimes, don’t we all?!). I have no doubt that this was the cause of the low self esteem I have always had but for me the depression had its roots in other, later events; the low self esteem may have made me more vulnerable to it, I have no idea, but trying to analyse it can’t change things for me today and it’s today (and tomorrow if I’m granted it) which is where I live now to the very best of my ability.
As I got older I found I could, with the wisdom of age and life experience, understand why certain things happened and I could then move on to forgive. I then collected the unpleasant things together and put them into a box in my mind. The lock on the box isn’t strong enough to keep it permanently closed but I then invented something else for the escape attempts. I conjured up a pair of old fashioned scales and put the escapees on one side and all the good things that I now have, my family, my home, my garden, my pets, the hard-earned a academic and professional qualifications and a long working life followed by the wonderful laziness and indulgence (no commute, no deadlines, no early morning starts, no time to appreciate the changing seasons) of retirement and the ability to take each day as it comes - so many things to give thanks for and they outweigh those escapees by so much that I can then put them back in the box where I belong. That’s just the coping mechanism I worked out to deal with the hurt which will always be with me and about which I’ve told no-one but my husband and my son. The low self esteem is something I still have but not so badly now. I have nothing to prove to anyone now. That’s just my little amateur coping mechanism and perhaps something like it may give a little comfort and respite to others. Live with it as there is no choice about that, it happened and we can’t re-write the past, but don’t let it mar the good things in life, the very simple pleasures that each day can bring if we let it, as the hurt will do given half a chance. I wish everyone with horrible memories well.
RomRoot, how’s it going? Miss you.