Great days at school.
Lived in a rural village, so lots of green space to go out and play in.
Called in for tea.
2 beaches in the village, so summer holidays were spent on the beach from 9am-4pm.
Bike rides without helmets.
3 TV channels to choose from.
1 computer game, if you were rich enough.
Left in the car in the pub car park, with coke and crisps, whilst my parents drank inside.
and many other things.
Yep, it was excellent.
I think we grew up in the same town lovely childhood, born in 1973 so love that era. However looking back in retrospect my parents must of had it tough as the recession in the 1980's was very bad. However bar giving out about the electricity and phone bill I never knew (til I was an adult) how we struggled for money.
In that case I think you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who'd answer "No" if they were sincere. Of course the people themselves may not see it as a problem.
Had a very happy childhood, my brother and I. Dad always worked, mum started full time work when I was 7 my brother, who was 3 years older, had a key to the house to let us in after school. I know now realise today, with all this PC, my parents would have been charged with child neglect but we didn't mind at al and it didn't do us any harm in the end. They both had to work to put food on the table, that was in the late 1970's. A lot of our school friends parents were in the same position.
At the time we were on a new housing estate, full of young families, we had a wonderful time, as kids playing on the green outside in the summer, in all weathers, we were a close nit community and looked out for each other.
We had some wonderful Christmas's and holidays abroad, which we will never forget.
Joels dad if you want to talk feel free, if you want a private chat with anybody also go ahead
Im a voluntary Samaritan and also had an unhappy childhood, but some people find talking/listening works wonders
Hope youre ok
My childhood wasn't run of the mill but not traumatic. Parents divorced so a lot of back and forth between two different countries, several custody related incidents such as kidnap attempts, being followed by private investigators, and some media attention. If anything my childhood was traumatic for my parents.
When I speak about my childhood or write it down it sounds really awful and many people have said to me that they don't understand how I'm still keeping so strong because they couldn't do it.
But I wouldn't really describe it as traumatic as I know people who have been through worse and people who have been really affected by the things that they went through.
I don't really feel like it's affected me but I don't know whether that's because it hasn't or it's because I haven't allowed it to.
I think I would class my childhood as traumatic - I was abused mentally, physically and sexually by a relative, stepfather and then mother and boyfriend which led me having to have an abortion which left me unable to have children.. Bullied as a child, Taken to a childrens home where I spent the rest of my childhood, went to court, saw my abusers effectively get let off and then have most of my adult life blighted by this childhood. Have your own mother disown you and refuse to deal with what happened, called a liar many times over the abuse, and then for her to die without any acknowledgement of it happening or why.. And only now at 46 dealing with the deamons and mental health I have been left with.
So not that traumatic really...lol
Strewth reading all that back is scary, and yet I'm still here. Gods knows how..I shouldn't be.
my God,now that is traumatic,and youre still here because youre braver and stronger than you think.Hope your life is a lot more stable and happier now xxx
I think that the vast majority of people suffer some kind of trauma in childhood. To go through 16 years of life without a major event such as a death affecting your family seems improbable. Experiences that can be dealt with easily by an adult can be very traumatic to a child; bullying, death of a grandparent, a car accident and so on.
I had a good childhood, born in 1943 the eldest of three sisters, we didn't have much but then nobody else we knew did either and nobody took any notice in those days, Dad was a London cabbie, mum didn't work and the school was more or less at the end of our street. We played out with all the , other kids a lot, dad used to take us fishing, he was a wonderful dad, kind, and very funny. Mum was the disciplinarian, of the two, but I don't remember ever being beaten.
I do remember being put on a train, it was called The Devon Belle, an old steam train, at Waterloo and being met by my aunt and uncle when it stopped at or near Ilfracombe in Devon, for a holiday with my cousins, mum and dad and my two sisters came down later. I was seven years old, imagine doing that these days, but I loved it, and I've loved trains and travelling ever since.
I was just wondering do they? I had one, but I'm wondering is it uncommon or not?
Should the title be Did you have a traumatic childhood?
If im to answer your poll as yes, I'm saying everyone has had a traumatic childhood. And I can't answer for everyone.
Up until I was 11 I Had a very traumatic childhood.( mental and physical abuse)Even considered ending my life a few times, glad now I couldn't pluck up the courage.
That depends how you define 'traumatic' I suppose. Living through your parent's divorce is certainly not going to be pleasant but I doubt it's traumatic in most cases. So I voted 'no' - I think only a small number of children experience anything truly traumatic. I got mentally bullied a bit at school but I learnt to ignore it. Probably made me a bit stronger.
To go through 16 years of life without a major event such as a death affecting your family seems improbable
A family death is not traumatic to everyone. That's kind of the point here. Both my grandmothers and my uncle died when I was in my early teens. It wasn't traumatic at all. Quite honestly it was a bit exciting - a break from the routine as it were. A chance to attend an event and be a responsible adult.
That might be because my parents have never tried to 'dress up' death as something magical. When family members died they just said they had died. None of that 'gone to a better place' crap. As a result I've never had any hang-ups about death. It's just the final process of life. A bit sad to think you won't talk to them ever again but nothing more.
Mine was mixed. Some lovely memories, some horrendous ones. All of that has shaped who I am. It can also be a matter of interpretation. We can all react differently to the same experiences. That's what gives us individual variation, I guess. One person's trauma can be another's salvation (no, I don't mean in the Biblical sense). I can feel very angry about some of the stuff that happened and do reflect on it from time to time but I've kind of let the anger 'go' because I don't want to be 'traumatised' in the here and now. Don't want to miss out on the good stuff. Admittedly, it's easier some times than others but a good laugh usually sorts me out.
ETA: I voted 'other' because I don't feel I can speak for anyone else.
Mine was very unhappy. Home situation was awful most days (alcoholism and witnessing very frequent violence). Although sometimes I look back with sadness of how I suffered, it hasn't ruined my life, so for that reason I will say that for me it wasn't traumatic.
Comments
I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.
Its more common than you think
At the time we were on a new housing estate, full of young families, we had a wonderful time, as kids playing on the green outside in the summer, in all weathers, we were a close nit community and looked out for each other.
We had some wonderful Christmas's and holidays abroad, which we will never forget.
Im a voluntary Samaritan and also had an unhappy childhood, but some people find talking/listening works wonders
Hope youre ok
But I wouldn't really describe it as traumatic as I know people who have been through worse and people who have been really affected by the things that they went through.
I don't really feel like it's affected me but I don't know whether that's because it hasn't or it's because I haven't allowed it to.
What an utterly weird question.
You might as well ask if everyone dislikes brussel sprouts.
Besides which, one person's "traumatic" is another's "reasonably OK most of the time"
This.
Very silly question/
Now youre showing your ignorance
I do remember being put on a train, it was called The Devon Belle, an old steam train, at Waterloo and being met by my aunt and uncle when it stopped at or near Ilfracombe in Devon, for a holiday with my cousins, mum and dad and my two sisters came down later. I was seven years old,
Should the title be Did you have a traumatic childhood?
If im to answer your poll as yes, I'm saying everyone has had a traumatic childhood. And I can't answer for everyone.
Up until I was 11 I Had a very traumatic childhood.( mental and physical abuse)Even considered ending my life a few times, glad now I couldn't pluck up the courage.
That might be because my parents have never tried to 'dress up' death as something magical. When family members died they just said they had died. None of that 'gone to a better place' crap. As a result I've never had any hang-ups about death. It's just the final process of life. A bit sad to think you won't talk to them ever again but nothing more.
ETA: I voted 'other' because I don't feel I can speak for anyone else.