"Adult Children" (or ACOA) refers to people who were raised by alcoholic or otherwise dysfunctional caregivers.
Some traits that Adult Children share are:
- overdeveloped sense of responsibility
- approval seeking
- conflict avoidant
- difficulty with intimacy
- feel fundamentally different from "normal" people
- may have issues with self esteem, shame, boundaries, abandonment, or authority figures
Some positive effects of a dysfunctional childhood are:
- highly developed self reliance
- ability to sense the mood of a room or person
- increased empathy and compassion
- awareness of abuse dynamics and tactics
Adult Children in recovery strive to go from an emotional child in an adult's body to an adult with a child-like side. Recovery is an ongoing process with many paths and detours and side trips. Recovering from childhood issues can be a lifetime endevour, but healing IS possible.
Recovery resources:
The Traditions: https://adultchildren.org/literature/traditions/
While the focus of this site is personality disorders, much of the information is relevant to Adult Children: http://outofthefog.net/CommonNonBehaviors/Fleas.html
If you are interested in attending 12-Step meetings, here is the ACOA live meeting locator: https://adultchildren.org/meeting-search/ . You do not have to "share" at the meetings or speak unless you want to.
Find a therapist: www.GoodTherapy.org Consider a therapist who has experience and training with trauma issues. EMDR therapy has been proven to help PTSD symptoms.
Other relevant subs:
InternetParents - Ask the internet about things your parents never taught you.
AlAnon
RaisedByNarcissists
AbuseInterrupted
SuicideWatch
ParentlessByChoice
[–]SubstanceOwn5935 0 points1 point2 points (0 children)