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Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

I feel broken from every angle, I have nobody

10 replies

sallyuo · 31/01/2023 07:08

I feel like I’ve been manipulated and bullied all my life. I had a tricky childhood, filled with material things and effort from my parents but sadly they didn’t do emotional support. I’ve struggled with this throughout my life and I’m now 37. I’ve had endless toxic relationships and been utterly abused by various men in various ways. The latest left me when pregnant and isn’t paying maintenance or offering any support. In the meantime, my parents have suggested this is my fault as I’m difficult and was ‘a badly behaved child.’

I have lots of friends and a decent career and to be honest it’s the only things that make me think I can’t be as bad as I’m made out to be. I dint know why I’m posting really. Just sad. I’m not the person I could have been as my self esteem is in tatters and always has been. I’m not sure how I’ve even managed to achieve what I have as it’s been an emotional struggle always. I just want to run away and be me. I feel bruised at comments my family make and I am absolutely battered by what my ex partner did and continues to do. Perhaps im the problem? I haven’t slept, thinking about how alone I really am.

OP posts:
savvy7 · 31/01/2023 07:12

Important lesson I learned is don't listen to parents who weren't there for you emotionally. They're likely at the root of your self-esteem issues.

TippledPink · 31/01/2023 07:13

Sorry to hear you are feeling low. You are not the problem. If your parents said that to you, then it is quite clear that they are part of the problem! Maybe the success of your relationships is partly due to your relationship with your parents. If you have lots of frienso, can you speak to them about how you are feeling so you don't feel so alone?

Have you done the Freedom Programme? That may help with your future relationships and identifying the red flags.

MMadness · 31/01/2023 07:25

Run.

Cut the toxic fuckers and just do you and your baby. Grey rock everyone.

Use the applicable organisation to collect child support and begin the journey of seeing your own worth.

It's long and hard, but you'll get there.

perfectcolourfound · 31/01/2023 07:25

You're clearly a decent person who has been very unfortunately landed with bad parents. Please ignore what they're saying - you already know you can't rely on them.

I'm so sorry you've been through a lot of bad relationship experiences. But they don't define who you are.

You are a good person with lots of friends and a succesful career. That's who you are. You are worthy. You don't deserve to be treated badly. While you have friends you aren't alone. Focus on you and your child and build yourself back up. You've been left with self esteem issues, and while that's the case there is a real risk of you ending up in another bad relationship. No relationship is better every time than a bad one. As pp said, try the freedom programme.

I'm so sorry you're feeling so down. But this will pass. You have a lot of positive things in your life. It will get better.

Dery · 31/01/2023 07:26

“You are a good person with lots of friends and a succesful career. That's who you are. You are worthy. You don't deserve to be treated badly. While you have friends you aren't alone. Focus on you and your child and build yourself back up. You've been left with self esteem issues, and while that's the case there is a real risk of you ending up in another bad relationship. No relationship is better every time than a bad one. As pp said, try the freedom programme.”

This with bells on.

Cocochat · 31/01/2023 07:30

You have a good career and a baby.
Forget relationships for a while, men or family.
Keep you good friends close and enjoy parenthood.

Thisisworsethananticpated · 31/01/2023 07:40

The are the chickens from your childhood coming home to roost sadly

the fact is you have survived in many ways in terms of work and building a career

you can see very Clearly that all your past relationships were toxic

sometimes we need to hit this to realise that a change is needed

you have your life and a baby
this is a good time to stay single and really do one research and reading around this

start some new habits

start to reduce time with toxic parents

SweetheartNecklineForMyBust · 31/01/2023 07:46

I'm sorry for what you have gone through. One of the shittiest things about having wounds from our parents is that we believe what they said to us about ourselves. If they, who brought us into the world think so of us, they who should supposedly love us unconditionally see us this way how can anyone else love us? This is a very difficult belief to disentangle yourself from but it is very possible.

I don't know if you've done any or much therapy and there are many types but I had a similar issue with my parents and my psychotherapist did inner child work with me. I later found a lot more info about this type of therapy in self help books and on social media. It helped me understand that the way they treated me was a reflection on them rather than me or my value and worth as a person. I had internalised the message that I wasn't worthy of love, there was something fundamentally wrong with me when really, 'normal', emotionally sound parents don't make their child feel this way. I later found out my parents had difficult and unloving childhoods with one parent being the black sheep of the family. They raised me the way they were raised in the way they knew. I'm not even sure they had the awareness of how wrong it was.

Your description of parents who gave you things but not what you needed emotionally reminded me of the stately homes thread on Relationship board, I believe. If you search from it it should come up. There will be people who went through a similar experience.

You are 37, still young with so much life yet to live. Relationships success is partly luck and also depends on the other person being decent and truthful. They are 50-50. Of course, it's a huge help when you come from a place of healthy self esteem and having had a good childhood with great role models and can spot any red flags a mile off, but most of us have some damage or issues, most of us experience disappointment and heartbreak. People can change and disappoint us. What I'm saying is what happened with your ex could have happened to someone else with loving parents. It could have been due to anything that you ended up with someone who turned out to be unsupportive so please see it as a lesson rather than a stick to beat yourself with. You've beaten yourself up enough for multiple lifetimes. Self compassion, which to me is treating myself like a good friend or my child, mothering yourself again even when you don't believe you deserve it until you see that you do deserve it.

It's normal to have down days, it's good to feel your feelings but it's also important to try and balance this by reminding yourself of all the positives in your life, such as a child(ren?), job, friendships. Physically running away doesn't solve the inner demons, you can't escape your head. You can find freedom and peace right where you are if you work on dismantling the messages that are holding you down. It takes work but it is achievable. There are so many people who have a similar experience, you're not alone. There are people who understand.

Just to add on a practical note, you might already know of Child Maintenance Service collecting child support from your ex without you having to communicate with him about it. You might like books by Brene Brown and Louise L Hay and lastly that you don't have to stay in touch with your parents, going low or no contact is an option.

Blessedwithsunshine · 31/01/2023 07:50

I would invest in a professional counsellor and get to the root of your self esteem issues. Until you fix that nothing will work. Second the idea of doing the freedom programme so you know what a toxic man looks like.

Your friends are your chosen family, keep low or no contact with your parents, their unhelpful criticisms of you are not making any thing better. Stop asking them to be parents, to help and support you - sadly they have no idea how to do that.

Watchkeys · 31/01/2023 08:10

You don't have nobody. You have you. As soon as you recognise that you are capable of looking after a person's basic needs (food, shelter, water, health including mental health, and basic support in life) you will recognise that you have access to all of those things. That's all any of us have, and they are a suitable springboard to start from.

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