Today's thought from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is: Self-Respect When my kids used to say, “Mom yelled at me,” what they meant was that I had told them to clean their rooms, or to say "please" and "thank you," or to obey some other parental directive they didn't like. To them, this was yelling because we just weren't a yelly household. So I don't know how my child became comfortable with yelling and swearing at me once he became an addict, but he did. And I let him. I used to be strong. I had self-respect. I would never have let anyone walk all over me. But with my addicted son, I pretty much rolled out the red carpet. He sneered at me and called me names; he was rude, insulting, and mean. He manipulated me, used me, and abused my love and trust. When he said he hated me, didn't call back, or didn't show up, I pretended it didn't hurt. Instead, I groveled. I was desperate, determined to hang on to the last imaginary thread of our relationship-even if it was abusive. This is not love-not of the self. Not of anyone. Unconditional love doesn't mean you have to unconditionally accept bad behaviors. Anonymous You are reading from the book: Tending Dandelions by Sandra Swenson Tending Dandelions © 2017 by Sandra Swenson. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the permission of Hazelden. Online daily inspirations Read a Thought for the Day from six of our most popular daily meditations books. They're posted online, every day, at hazeldenbettyford.org. Are you or a loved one struggling with alcohol or other drugs? Help starts here. Call us at: 1-866-755-3221 Managing your email subscriptions Have an account on hazelden.org? Sign in now to manage your preferences. Can't sign in? Send us an email to Change your email address. Unsubscribe from Today's Gift. Stop all Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation email. To send us feedback, please email todaysgift@hazeldenbettyford.org Hazelden Betty Ford Foundtion, 15251 Pleant Valley Rd., P.O. Box 11, RW3, Center City, MN 55012-0011, 1-866-755-3221 Please feel free to forward this email to a friend.
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