I've namechanged but am a regular.
I've recently gone non contact with my parents. There are a variety of reasons why I've done this. My father has severe anger issues and I think there is lots of emotional abuse going on between him and my mother. My father cannot understand why I've gone non contact and thinks the following is ok:
When I was a child he smacked me a lot. Not just the odd tap on the hand or bum if I did something dangerous, but if he was in a bad mood he's start to invent things i'd done wrong, or would make out things I'd done wrong were worse than they are, and would really whack me hard, often around the head.
I remember once, aged 7 or 8, going to a playground with my parents and suddenly getting hit around the head and falling to the floor. I thought someone had attacked me but it was my dad hitting me saying I'd 'stuck my tongue out at my mum'. When I'd done nothing of the sort and was just playing.
The smacking continued on and off until I left home at 21. Even in my late teens/early 20s if I disagreed with him or he didn't like what I had to say I'd end up going flying across the kitchen or with a slap on my face. Or he'd punch me on my arm. Or he'd shout at me so loudly in my face and make me wet myself.
He seems to think the above is normal and has been saying to family members that I'm the one with the problem and that I'm ungrateful, and that that is how families work. Of course, I know the opposite and bring my kids up in a totally different way. But his behaviour still bothers me. I don't suppose I'm ever going to convince him he was in the wrong though am I?