Our stories
Don't be silly @Faith-and-Hope you never have to worry about replying, I disappear from here and stop using the Internet at times for a digital cleanse, its healthy to take a break. It can be so automatic to go online on your computer or phone and if you aren't mindful you can waste hours!
Yes, with the kids and especially with one with disability needs you will have to have some contact with him. But I just hope it is the bare minimum. He does not deserve anymore of your time. I only got rid of my abusive parent who also had NPD through death. And even then he still controlled Mum from the grave. I refuse to be controlled from the grave, he won't have that over me.
I just hope that you can get some level of peace. He doesn't have the capacity to respect you, if anything he will get nastier and channel it all towards you. They seem to pick on one person, I was the child that drew the short straw there, so I understand the hatred. He is his poodle's problem now.
You don't come across as a self-deluded kind of person, you have your faith, but you don't have blind faith in people.....that is a good thing. It means you can live a life of your own instead of being a servant of some revolting, hairy shoulders, hairy back & crack, man. Eew. (Sorry to all the fellas out there reading, I have my reasons). Corny 
Hi @Corny
It’s so lovely to hear from you - thank you so much for your understanding
That’s so true! It can take an incredible amount of stamina to live with mental health conditions and there are days when I feel as though I’m running on empty and I just don’t know how I’m going to find the emotional reserves to survive another day.
I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve experienced two nervous breakdowns and I can’t even begin to imagine what life was like for you during these times Although I’ve never experienced a nervous breakdown, I have experienced something similar and I can honestly say that this was one of the darkest times of my life.
Just prior to making the decision to take some time away from the forums, I found myself shutting down and I noticed that seemingly simple tasks were starting to become overwhelming and increasingly more challenging.
Fortunately, through time, I’ve become better at recognising some of the early warning signs that I’m starting to sink and so (as much as possible) I do what I can to prevent myself from reaching the point where it becomes even harder to find my way back
I think that you’ve raised a really interesting point in relation to peer support 
Unfortunately, in my experience, people often make assumptions that if you live with a particular mental health condition, then you’re automatically well placed to support others - especially if you’re living with the same mental health condition as someone else!
Although I passionately believe that people who have a lived experience of mental health conditions hold a wealth of knowledge and expertise that can be used to support others, I also think that it’s imperative that the expectations associated with peer support are realistic and fall within a carefully defined scope of practice. In my experience, considerations such as these, play a vital role in protecting people from inadvertently finding themselves in a position where they’re expected to address gaps in services and / or respond to issues that are ultimately the responsibility of other professionals and / or organisations.
I love your sense of humour and I had a little giggle to myself when you shared ‘I tied to outdo you with hearts - I’m competitive that way’ 
I’m not sure if you’ve ever watched the reality television show called ‘Survivor’ but the slogan for the game is ‘outwit outplay outlast!’ Your words reminded me of this and I could visualise people competing in all sorts of challenges with the ultimate goal being to outplay each other with hearts
Absolutely! It’s hard to believe that lockdown is finally coming to an end and that the world is slowly beginning to open up again With this in mind, I just wondered if there’s anywhere in particular that you’re looking forward to being able to visit once the restrictions ease?
Thank you so much for sharing the YouTube video with me The little baby sea otter is so cute and adorable and I just wanted to pick him up and give him a cuddle
Thinking of you
Take care of yourself,
ShiningStar
