I too would join that group. I think the abuse that children suffer directly impacts, so much of what we suffer as adults. I stayed married to a abusive man for 17 years, but never knew any different. My father was an alcoholic, most of the time a falling down drunk. He was my good parent. My mother was something else. Sometimes want to call it evil, but not sure that is right.

has anyone else felt that as a child things seemed normal until we realized that other kids did not have to have the same fears or have to protect themselves in the same way? I almost think that finding that out (that most families were different) was the hardest thing for me. It was like there was another world and mine really was hell. I think perhaps that is when I started to feel alone and angry because then it really did seem like the cause of the pain must be me since I had to live with this and no one else did. Up till that point I thought that every other kid was going through the exact same thing; but, they really weren't. *shrug* nothing like a little personal revelation to start the day. =) I think I am just now allowing myself to realize that I actually am angry...now what?

I've noticed that before. My wife has two really great parents. I have to stop myself and ask, "Did you get this too?"

I am 48 and don't remember my childhood which has lead to believe I was abused as a child. I think its a good idea.

I think it would be a good idea, but like so many members of this community I was sexualy abused as a child and am now an emotionaly abused adult. Also, a physicaly abused adult held at gun point in my younger adult past. I have a tendency to believe after much research that so many adult survivors of childhood abuse either become abusers themselves, to themselves or become codependents of abusers. Everything appears to be intertwined and knotted together. I guess we have to try and free the knot one problem at a time. Strength & Friendship to all.......M

That's why I came to this community and I don't feel at all apart of it. Mine was also childhood abuse where my Dad almost broke my nose and yelled at me for only staying home for 4 days of school. How DARE I go to schol with black eyes he inflicted.
OR, having him pull my hair out and blwme ME that it happened because my hair falls out easy.
Yes, I want to hear other people's storys and how "things were different back then" so that's why my Mom would make me stay in my room for 5 hours to wait for my Dad to come home and beat me.

And how having your Dad say out loud that you're not good at anything, you don't know how to talk to people, how that's effected my entire LIFE!!! This is what I want to hear! And I sure don't want to hear what many counselors have told me, "YOU CAN'T BLAME YOUR PARENTS FOR HOW YOU ARE NOW!"
BS!!! I can and DO BUT, I still love them!!! I want to know answers to those pathetic things.

I think having a community for adults who have suffered abuse as children is a great idea. Although I only allow "healthy" relationships in my life now, I still suffer a great deal of pain and anxiety because of the abuse I went through in my youth. I feel silly writing about my pain from the past in this community because so many people are suffering with abuse issues in their current life.

my husband falls under that catagory.

My hubby had terrible abuse n his childhood, from what I've been told. His sister and brother are really not with it, can't live stable lives. My hubby turned out to be the best one. He holds a job, but emotionally and socially he is dysfunctional and it stems from his upbringing.

So, there are alot of people I think that have had terrible childhoods, and don't function properly in their adulthood. So don't know about the community, but from all the postings on here, u could possibly have enought people for it.

as above posters have said, i really don't feel part of this community. i've thought many times about leaving but just haven't for whatever reason.

i cannot offer any advice to those in abusive relationships because i'm not in one and don't know what it's like.

i do think that another community for those who were physically/emotionally abused as children would be helpful

I'm in that boat.

I was physically and emotionally abused by my mother. Now I'm an adult suffering the aftermath. Just got into therapy a few months ago (for stress ... which turned out to be PTSD) and realized how much my life has been impacted by the trauma I suffered as a child.

I would join that community, if there was one.

Some of the issues I'd want to deal with would be: allowing closeness, over coming the need to be perfect, learning to express emotion, not stopping myself from being completely successful... ah, the list goes on and on.

Let me know if DS says yes. Thanks!

I'd join. I was physically and emotionally abused by my mother, who was in turn the child of an abusive alcoholic, and who knows how far back the chain goes. I am 42 and still dealing with the fallout. I hope and pray someday I can be free of the fear, grief and anger, and i will never stop working to make that possible, but I'm sad these days that it has effected me so much for so long - my self-esteem, my ability to get emotionally close to anyone, my sense of being wierd and different, my ability to function in society all damaged, in some ways severely. I thought I'd left a lot of that behind but recently some events in my life have brought it all back in a hard way. I'm just tired of it, but I know in the past I've gained a measure of wisdom and strength from the process of recovery; i hope I can continue that process. I haven't had any real emotional support in a long time, so I'm grateful to find this community.

I hope we get our own forum.

I, too, am shopping around for a support group to talk to about the physical and emotional abuse I suffered until I left home when I was nineteen. Thanks for letting me know that this is not the right forum for that.

mine was as a kid.