My mother, who may be seen as young by many, bravely faced the unexpected challenge of an aneurysm. One day, while taking my son to the pediatrician, I entrusted my daughter to the care of mother. When I returned home, firetrucks and police cars were outside; my heart skipped a beat. But my worry turned to relief as I spotted my daughter safe in the arms of a firefighter. That’s when I learned about my mother’s health scare – a suspected brain bleed or stroke. She fought through approximately 4 months in the hospital, where she showed remarkable progress after receiving a shunt and coil. After her hospital stay, the…
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My thoughts on being self-aware, self-focused, self-centered, or selfish stem from my mom. My mom has always been the one looking after every family member she could; you could call her the Florence Nightingale of the family. One care she would and could not give up was for her autistic brother, whom she cared for most of her life. As I’ve gotten older and attended therapy, I realized you can become co-dependent. This topic will be addressed in a separate post. To understand the self I am becoming, I must provide a brief backstory. My unconditional love for my mom always made me want to assist her as much as…
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I often wonder when true adulthood begins. Is it when you leave your caregiver’s home, take on all your bills, lose a caregiver, get married, or have children? To me, the boundaries are unclear and influenced by various aspects of your life situation. I felt I fully entered adulthood when I got engaged and moved in with my now-husband, whom I’ll call Doug. My mother told me that by living with a man, she would no longer support me, which included removing me from shared memberships. Despite this, I was already paying all my bills and occasionally helped with utility payments while living with her. I also assisted my mother…
