We have all gone through times when we felt we needed to “walk on eggshells” around someone or in a situation. Maybe it was at work, when employees were not secure in their position. Maybe it was a romantic relationship when there was great tension. It can just seem like you can never say the right thing and there is always tension. Sometimes it is just better not to talk at all than take the risk of having another argument.
Children feel that way a lot with their parents when they feel like they can do nothing right. It seems like the more tense the parents get, the more the kids pay the price and the more eggshells they have to walk on.
Another layer of this is when a parent suffers from alcoholism; no, when the entire family suffers from a parent being an alcoholic. A child never knows what it will be like when they come in the door after school, or the parent comes home after a night “out”, or after their parents has been drinking at home all weekend.
I know children who have poured their parent’s booze down the sink because they didn’t want them to get drunk again. Kids will also purposely stay away from home as much as they can and they would never bring a friend home because they didn’t know what condition their parent might be in.
More times than not, when a parent is an alcoholic, they get abusive with their family members in various ways, and the children suffer all of their lives to heal from that damage. Alcoholism is so destructive and hurtful to families, but there are resources to help get someone off of this destructive cycle.
This Tuesday, March 21, Lacey Anne Black, the author of “Dandelions to Daffodils: Chronicles of a Child with an Alcoholic Parent”, will be our guest on Chained No More Talk Radio at 2pm ET at www.toginet.com Her topic is titled: “Lacey’s Story: Adult Child of an Alcoholic to Therapist.” She will tell her compelling story of having an alcoholic parent, but also discuss how children are affected by an alcoholic parent, future addictions in the children, how to help an alcoholic, etc. If you have or are living in this difficult situation, tune in and be blessed. If you want to be informed about something that affects millions of families, we hope you will listen to learn.
Mom and Dad, maybe it is a good time to evaluate how open your conversation is with your children; especially teenagers. It is a harsh world out there and you can promote an atmosphere of peace, happiness, and open communication in your home so you kids can thrive. Do they avoid talking to you? Do they avoid you altogether? Are they afraid of you? Are they always in trouble with you? Evaluate for the sake of your kids and your family. Take a look at your use of alcohol in the home to see if it is affecting your relationship with your family members. Don’t be the reason your family has to “walk on eggshells.”