When a child is born they are a screaming mass of humanity, totally dependant on their mother to work out what the cries mean. Whether feeding or changing or burping, the mother very quickly works out what the child's needs are, and does her best to meet them. The new born baby can only focus initially on the breast, but very quickly develops enough to take in Mum's eyes.
In the first two years of life the baby changes and develops incredibly fast. And all the while all they want is to know they are loved, safe and warm. A child comes pre-programmed into wanting it's basic human needs met!
By the age of two the baby has moved from the breast into wanting sweeties in the supermarket, and having the almighty awful tantrum if this need is not met. This isn't because they are 'bad' or greedy it's because they have yet to be taught self control, cognisance and rational thought. They are still an emotional bundle wanting those basic needs met. We have been taught, and will teach our children over time, to put their feelings away and we will reward their 'good' behaviour instead.
During the first five years of life the child puts his parents on a pedestal. They can do no wrong. All small children love mummy and daddy unconditionally and tell their parents they are going to marry them! They don't just do this out of love, they also do it out of survival. The child unconsciously knows that they need their parent to survive. So during this time of parents being perfect, patterns are set that affect all of us later in life.
Once the child goes to school and starts socialising with other children they start to experience other models of child rearing. Parents are still perfect but they notice and use other parenting models to try and extend their boundaries, as in Little Johnnie's mum lets him stay up, eat sweets and carouse all night so why can't I?!
Then human beings hit adolescence! And for the sake of argument, if Mum and Dad are Christian, meat eating, right wing voters, the adolescent will automatically become a vegetarian, left wing, atheist, just because they can, and their parents know nothing anyway! They also become incredibly self centered the world revolves around them. Which is just them growing up, and adjusting to becoming the people they will eventually end up being.
Slowly then as the person hits maturity they stop rebelling just for the sake of it, and start making their own views usually based on their upbringing. Which is why so often we turn into our parents!!! But at this stage we'll not be ready to take that on board. As all young people reinvent the wheel,as what do their parents know about anything??
On reaching our twenties people are busy establishing themselves, starting their career, finding a place to live, meeting that someone special, and having children. No-one has time during this period to really think about their parents, except them perhaps being a bit of a nuisance!
The thirties find people consolidating their lives, careers, home, family and increasingly the parents are either useful in babysitting terms, but possibly becoming an emotional drag.
People can obviously resent their parents always, and many have huge emotional difficulties with them. But probably the majority of people do continue to love their parents, even if they sometimes find them aggravating. The guilt button is never very far from being pressed even for those people who get on with their parents. As in where we spend Christmas, for example, on our own, with his/her family. We rarely get to please all the people all the time in relation to our families.
It is however, in our thirties and forties that the biggest attitude change has to come in relation to our parents for us to be able to cope with what is to come.
We have to forgive our parents for what they have done to us!!!
What I mean by this is, that we have no choice about having our histories, what we have a choice about is whether be are a product or a victim of them. And if we hold our parents responsible for our adult selves, then there is work to do.
No parent ever has a child to ill treat it. The child gets ill treated as the parent doesn't know any better. Those children who are unfortunately battered to death by their parents were not born to satisfy the parents need for blood lust. The parent is just not adequate in relation to doing the job properly of child rearing.
And there by the Grace of God do we all go. I can still vividly remember the day when my eldest son was a few months old and he wouldn't stop screaming. I was stressed beyond the ability to deal with it. I was crying hysterically. I was also getting incrediably angry. I wanted to hurt my child, who I adored. I was in danger of getting him and smashing his head against the wall. But I didn't,I had the nouce to not do that. What I did do was drop him from the height of the cot bars onto the mattress in the cot, a distance of about two foot. Which caused him to cry even more. And at that point I was so shocked by what I'd done I phoned a friend for help. She was round within minutes. I was sitting at the top of the stairs she ran past me and comforted my son before dealing with me. Of course the minute he was picked up by someone calm he stopped crying ,and went back to his usual sunny nature. It was a salutary lesson for me about how very easy it is to loose control. And something I have never forgotten and use when talking to clients who have young children, as a way to share that isolation and out of controlness that all parents can feel when faced with small children.
But back to dealing with parents.
The thing any child has to identify, and this isn't usually possible until the 'child' is 40 something. Is that their parents did the best they could in bringing them up, even if that was crap. What gets in the way of this idea,is the perfection that the small child held their parent, that, putting their parents on a pedestal, that is an essential part of the small child's survival.
What has to be separated is that before their parents became their parents, they were human beings first with all the myriad of behaviours/beliefs/skills/ emotional development that make up every human being. Which will be based on their experiences as children and their parents before that.
Once we understand that, then we can forgive our parents for not being perfect. And that is essential for us as children of parents who are getting older every day. We may be expected to have an increasing role in their support and care. And if we haven't forgiven our parents for being themselves, then that job is incredibly tough as every time we are asked to do something our adolescent selves gets in the way with resentment and rage.
I had a wonderful happy childhood, I was a wanted and loved little girl. The problems in my life stemmed from 10 years of age all the way through adolescence. My parents didn't do a good job then of caring for me. I carried all the stuff from this time into my adult life. I was angry with them for being alcoholics and having mental health issues. They constantly pissed me off, none more so then having to speak to them on the phone every Sunday morning, without fail. It used to drive me nuts. To the point now that I phone my son up anyday but Sunday!
But at some point in my forties I remember being out walking my dog one morning. I'd been thinking a lot about my parents at the time. My mum had been dead several years, but Dad was still alive and causing me grief. And suddenly it came to me that THEY HADN'T DONE IT DELIBERATELY, THEY'D DONE THE BEST THEY COULD. The thought stopped me in my tracks, suddenly I understood they were human beings before they became my parents. And I suddenly let go of all the years of resentment I'd carried around about their supposed ill treatment of me. In effect I forgave them for not being perfect, which they never had been anyway, that had just been the place I as a child had put them to ensure my survival.
So now although I know my parents had 'faults' I understand these because I know their histories, and as a therapist I know how those histories would have affected their ability to raise children. And now when I think of my parents it ia always with love.
I am grateful for how they brought me up. I am grateful that I went through hell as a teenager. Because without their care of me, whether good or bad, I wouldn't be the person I am today.
And I would give an awful lot to have a phone call on Sunday
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3 comments:
I did understand they did the best they could. I did disown both of them. (but not with bitterness or hatred). I just decided not to be around such abuse any longer. I have empathy for all but not where it will interfere with my own life quality. (getting molested by a drunken father at age 8 approximately and a mom trying to convince you it never happened.. not a healthy environment). My life is full with so much Joy now. I have a blessed life; work; health (both emotionally and physically); I wish all good for all.......and I'm staying with healthy people more and more.
Sometimes we have to remove the toxic people from our lives,it's the only safe option.
I note you don't mention babies removed from their mothers in the first year and the trauma involved.Little recognised by some including professionals.
I'm trying hard to forgive my mother, she had a lot of problems as a child herself and when I was growing up. I ring them daily now as they both have health problems, but every now and then I do need a break from them. My father is a bit of a closed book, but my Mother shares more than she should with her children, even if we are middle aged now. :-)
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