Being Raised with "Weird" Childhood Rules

Lots of equality in our household.
Part of my dad's many problems stemmed from his religious nut (sorry for the redundancy, lol) mother's belief that equality was mostly a sin; you see, the universe was ruled by a stern, dictatorial god who didn't give a sh*t about equality (or love for that matter, even love of Him; you just needed to fear Him). Wow, there seems to be a lot of that still around, doesn't there?
 

My ex was raised like this (silent mealtime). Also, no hugs, kisses or “I love you”. And no compliments for ANYTHING, just stern looks of disappointment. If you want to know how to create a narcissist with a substance abuse problem - this is the way.

Edit: this is not to say this is the only result. Other problems can plague children raised this way. One of the other kids from this family is a conspiracy theorist who lives in a “bunker” and thinks everyone is a potential “enemy”.
well we never got hugs, or kisses or I love you's... the nearest I got to it, was when my mother said that I was her favourite child because I was her first born...

Ultimately when I became an adult I didn't know how to express outward emotions like hugs etc... except for with my baby... I had to learn it all.. and even to this day I'm not comfortable with anyone hugging me..I tend to freeze...

However ..I never becaame a conspiracy theorist..definitely not a Narcissists ..with or without a substance abuse problem.

Honestly I had a terrible childhood.. one of the worst which was barely survivable... yet I hear people who use their abusive childhoods as excuses for their bad behavior as an adult... that's all it is, an excuse..

I understand them feeling certain emotions as I do like with the hugs, etc.. but turning into narcissism, some into killers, some others into abusers.. alcoholics..that's a lifestyle choice... and it's handy to blame somebody else for it...
 
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well we never got hugs, or kisses or I love you's... the nearest I got to it, was when my mother said that I was her favourite cihild because I was her first born...

Ultimately when I became an adult I didn't know how to express outward emotions like hugs etc... except for with my baby... I had to learn it all.. and even to this day Im not comfortable with anyone hugging me..I tend to freeze...

However ..I never becaame a conspiracy theorist..definitely not a Narcissists ..with or without a substance abuse problem.

Honestly I had a terrible childhood.. one of th worst which was barely suvivable... yet I hear people who use their abusive childhoods as excuses for their bad behavior as an adult... that's all it is, is an excuse..

I understand them feeling certain emotions as I do like with the hugs, etc.. but turning into narcissism, some into killers, some others into abusers.. alocholics..that's a lifestyle choice... and it's handy to blame somebody else for it...
From what I've read on this forum after joining it back in June, @hollydolly, you've done a remarkable job overcoming your childhood trauma.
 
Our only rules were no TV watching and no answering the phone if it rang. I didn't mind weeknight dinners too much. We ate in the breakfast nook off the kitchen. But on Saturdays and Sundays, my parents would insist that we dine in the formal dining room, with the formal china and silver, etc. That wouldn't have been so bad, but they were invariably drunk, and arguments usually ensued. My stomach still knots up just thinking about it.

After my mother died, my father tried to get either me or my sister to take that fancy dining room table. I tried to politely decline, but he pushed the issue until I finally told him that the table was associated with nothing but unhappy memories. My sister once joked that one of us should take it and we could chop it up, light it on fire, and roast marshmallows over the flames.
 
From what I've read on this forum after joining it back in June, @hollydolly, you've done a remarkable job overcoming your childhood trauma.
well that's very kind of you, thank you. I am not going to pretend I'm unaffected by it..even to this day.. but I never sought out external help, therapists et al... I never could afford it for a start.. but anyway, in essence I just had to learn to pull my big girl pants up and get on with my life...and that's what I've done.

Don't get me wrong, sometimes if I'm telling about an event that happened all those years ago.. it still triggers me and I get tears .. but we just have to move on don't we?... People who were children in POW camps had it worse than me.. and I have yet to hear of any of them being murderers, or drug abusers because of their experiences..

I remember when I was probably in my 30's...I read somewhere that said... (paraphrasing) You're not responsible for the actions aganst you which destroyed your childhood... .... You ARE responsible for not allowing it to destroy your adulthood..
 
Fortunately for me, we had no such Not Talking rule and we had conversations at meal times.

There wasnt a No TV at dinner times rule as such - but since only TV was in a separate room that was always the case anyway.

The days my father was coming home late from work, we kids were fed early and my parents set u p one of those folding card tables and ate in lounge room watching their programs
 
Except for holidays and special occasions we ate in the breakfast nook. There were 7 of us, four kids, parents and Grandpa. The bench on my side of the table held four and three on the other side. Since I was the youngest I got squished at the end by the window and left out of most conversation.
It wasn't the best or the worst but hugs were never a part of it.
 
well we never got hugs, or kisses or I love you's... the nearest I got to it, was when my mother said that I was her favourite cihild because I was her first born...

Ultimately when I became an adult I didn't know how to express outward emotions like hugs etc... except for with my baby... I had to learn it all.. and even to this day Im not comfortable with anyone hugging me..I tend to freeze...

However ..I never becaame a conspiracy theorist..definitely not a Narcissists ..with or without a substance abuse problem.

Honestly I had a terrible childhood.. one of th worst which was barely suvivable... yet I hear people who use their abusive childhoods as excuses for their bad behavior as an adult... that's all it is, is an excuse..

I understand them feeling certain emotions as I do like with the hugs, etc.. but turning into narcissism, some into killers, some others into abusers.. alocholics..that's a lifestyle choice... and it's handy to blame somebody else for it...
Thank you HollyDolly for mentioning this. My father also had an abusive childhood and turned out to be one of the nicest, sweetest guys there is. Well, he's passed on now. I can't stand criminals, child molesters, etc. being excused for their abhorrent behaviour because of their childhood. It makes me sick.
 
The rule for us was, we had to eat all of our meal or stay at the table until we did. I hated liver and would have to stay and eat it with ketchup to get it down.

Father liked to talk and we told my younger sister not to ask any questions that would set him off. He would talk about any subject and give his opinion which was too extreme. We would kick our little sister under the table to keep her quiet.
 
Gee Whiz! After reading these posts, I feel like I grew up in the Nelson’s household. Dad asked my sister and I about school and how my sports were going. Then he would remind me that I needed to practice on the piano more. He would tell my sister about keeping her room neater. For being a girl, she sure was a messy person. She would take her dirty clothes and try to throw them in the hamper, but if she missed, she would let them lie there.

We each had our own TV in our bedroom and I would go watch my Phillies during summer nights. My mom and dad would sit and watch westerns. I asked my mom if she liked watching westerns and she said she did because the men were very handsome. She was a fan of Rory Calhoun in “The Texan.”
 
Growing up there was weird rule for my brothers and me; don't upset your father or he will die. Imagine the guilt we could have felt if indeed he died as the result of conflict between us and him.
My mother used to say almost the exact same thing! Whenever she thought I was smartmouthing her, she'd always trot out this story about a girl who argued with her mother, and the mother dropped dead within an hour because of getting so upset. I'd forgotten about that until I read your post.
 
Gee Whiz! After reading these posts, I feel like I grew up in the Nelson’s household. Dad asked my sister and I about school and how my sports were going. Then he would remind me that I needed to practice on the piano more. He would tell my sister about keeping her room neater. For being a girl, she sure was a messy person. She would take her dirty clothes and try to throw them in the hamper, but if she missed, she would let them lie there.

We each had our own TV in our bedroom and I would go watch my Phillies during summer nights. My mom and dad would sit and watch westerns. I asked my mom if she liked watching westerns and she said she did because the men were very handsome. She was a fan of Rory Calhoun in “The Texan.”
you were lucky to have been born to 2 parents who actually wanted their children....and loved them
 
The rule for us was, we had to eat all of our meal or stay at the table until we did. I hated liver and would have to stay and eat it with ketchup to get it down.
same thing, stay at the table until it was eaten. In my case I hated stewed beef.. it was grey , horrible fat grissly meat, and would make me literally gag. So I couldn't eat it. They served it up to me knowing I couldn't eat it.. then after sitting at the table for a couple of hours it was taken from me and served up to me freezing cold with a layer of fat on top for breakfast.. when I didn't eat it, I would get a punch to the head from my father.. or the buckle end of his belt... happened every single time..
 
It was weird growing up in a preachers family. You might think it was all religion, prayers and confessions. The truth is my parents never spoke of god or christianity at home but we all were required to attend church not to worship god but to support my dad's ministry so he would look good for the community we lived in. Such a hypocrite he was.
 
you were lucky to have been born to 2 parents who actually wanted their children....and loved them
you were lucky to have been born to 2 parents who actually wanted their children....and loved them
You’re right, but when you’re a kid, even up to being 16, you think of parents as someone who is always expecting better out of you. I remember one time I asked my dad if nothing I do pleased him. That was a very stupid mistake. I had to sit and listen to him for almost 40 minutes tell me about his childhood. It did sink in, but it took a year or so more until I learned he was just wanting me to do better. He realized that I had more potential, even though I didn’t.

My kids always thought I was “on their case” about things. My daughter was almost like my sister. She never took very good care of her bedroom. It was so bad, I kept the door closed so I wouldn’t have to look in and see how messy it was.
 
You’re right, but when you’re a kid, even up to being 16, you think of parents as someone who is always expecting better out of you. I remember one time I asked my dad if nothing I do pleased him. That was a very stupid mistake. I had to sit and listen to him for almost 40 minutes tell me about his childhood. It did sink in, but it took a year or so more until I learned he was just wanting me to do better. He realized that I had more potential, even though I didn’t.

My kids always thought I was “on their case” about things. My daughter was almost like my sister. She never took very good care of her bedroom. It was so bad, I kept the door closed so I wouldn’t have to look in and see how messy it was.
ooh we all had this problem with our kids and their bedrooms. My dd's bedroom was a complete disaster zone.. I would tell her it has to be cleaned up, and she'd say she knew where everything was...anyway I allowed her to paint all the walls black when she was going through her Goth stage.. you're only a teen once..:love: .surprisingly it wasn't too difficult to paint over again... I used to say to her I dread to think what her home will be like ..maybe I'll come and throw things on her floor.. jump on her sofa.. eat everythinng in her fridge and leave the dishes unwashed..when she's got her own home...:ROFLMAO: but of course you might guess.. that her home is Immaculate...
 
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ooh we all had this problem with our kids and their bedrooms. My dd's bedroom was a complete disaster zone.. I would tell her it has to be cleaned up, and she'd say she knew where evrything was...anyway I allowed her to paint all the walls black when she was going through her Goth stage.. you're only a teen once..:love: ..anyway I used to say to her I dread to think what her home will be like ..maybe I'll come and throw things on her floor.. jump on her sofa.. eat everythinng in her fridge and leave the dishes unwashed..when she's got her own home...:ROFLMAO: but of course you might guess.. that her home is Immaculate...
My son wanted to paint all his walls in his bedroom black and then put in black lighting to reflect off the walls with pictures that also reflected the lighting. I told him that when he bought his own home, he was welcome to do that and as much as I hate painting, I would help him. He didn’t ask again, but after he bought his home, I asked him when did he want me to come over and help him paint his bedroom walls black. He said, “Yeah, that was pretty dumb, wasn’t it?”
 
I am lucky that I had a loving childhood.

I think what helped was that my parents had loving childhoods and so did both of my grandmothers.

My grandfathers didn't fare so well as children.

One was left as the "man of the house" at the age of 9 after his father's death and was raised by a cold, hard mother. That grandpa had some emotional problems but loved us greatly.

The other one grew up in a large family in a hard-scrabble mountain town but was the most loving father and grandfather you could get this side of Heaven.

I was born into the right family, for sure and I thank my lucky stars for it daily.
 
So I read this internet article--can't find it now, sorry--about being raised with weird but actually useful childhood rules, one of which was No Talking During Meals. The article said that particular rule is good because it promotes appreciation of food and concentration skills. I grew up with this particular rule and since the silence during meals was always, always tense because my dad was a rageaholic who hated his life (except when he was in the first couple of weeks of a new affair), I don't feel like I learned a thing from it except "I want to get out of here as soon as I can."

Also, I remember when I made the mistake of inviting a friend over for dinner once and it turned out to be embarrassing as it feared it would, the friend asked me afterward why it was so weird and quiet at our table and why had my dad frowned at her so viciously when she made the mistake of saying something, "I said you're allowed to talk at your table?!"

Was anyone else raised with this rule and if so, do you think it was helpful?
Sorry you had to deal with that, can't blame you for wanting to get out of there. Talking was okay at our table, but if one of us started rambling about nonsense and not eating, my mother would tell us to quiet down and eat. My father worked nights, so it wasn't too often we all sat together at the table. Glad you turned out fine. 💙
 
Growing up there was weird rule for my brothers and me; don't upset your father or he will die. Imagine the guilt we could have felt if indeed he died as the result of conflict between us and him.
I don't know about you Mr. Ed, but this is when I want to go back in time as an adult and just say "yeah, OK, no problem." My mother was always going to die. It's such manipulation to pull on a child.
 


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