New Leaf: You should be a writer. You explained everything I had felt and gone through with my middle daughter while she was in her teens and even beyond the teen years.
Kris, I had felt everything you feel as a mother with my middle daughter who now has no contact with me. In this daughter's years of living with me and my husband, she would take off during holidays to get high. I reacted badly to this as I didn't know any better. My two other children suffered for this and I regret how I reacted. Had I known better, I would've reacted differently. This same daughter married a man with his own set of problems and who can't keep a job. So, I do think my daughter is supporting them along with her young child. I'm sure she does resent him for his irresponsibility of taking care of his family, but I don't think she'll leave him. One thing this daughter did right, was go back to school and receive some degree to make her be able to get a good job. She still drinks and that clouds her thinking and judgment . I hope things get better for you, Kris, and you get some peace in all of this.
