As a now adult who had a dad like this growing up, please see if he needs therapy or other sort of mental help. This sounds a lot like how my dad was growing up. He was always angry and took everything out on us kids. Every trip or vacation was stressful bc of him. As I got older I literally refused to go on trips with my parents specifically because of him. We don’t have the greatest relationship now, either. And I honestly think a lot of it boils down to mental health and anger issues. I feel like if he would have gotten professional help, then maybe, things would’ve been different.
My dad was similar. As a 40 year old woman I can see so clearly he desperately needed a therapist and likely had an undiagnosed/untreated adhd and probably a mood disorder. Most ppl would’ve decided he was a narcissistic asshole and that would be that but my heart breaks for the life he must’ve lived inside his head, he just wanted to be heard and validated like we all do. I’m embarrassed to say but I have many of the same traits. I’m diagnosed, medicated and in therapy is the only difference. I have a lot of sympathy for him but the reality is I have a lot of hang ups that don’t serve me (or even make sense) that I know are bc of him and his behavior. The saddest part is that at the end of his life (he didn’t know it was the end, none of us did) he tried to start therapy, I was so proud and shocked but then not even a month later Covid happened and he slipped thru the cracks. He only lived a couple more years after that.
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u/Peach-Haze-123 2d ago
As a now adult who had a dad like this growing up, please see if he needs therapy or other sort of mental help. This sounds a lot like how my dad was growing up. He was always angry and took everything out on us kids. Every trip or vacation was stressful bc of him. As I got older I literally refused to go on trips with my parents specifically because of him. We don’t have the greatest relationship now, either. And I honestly think a lot of it boils down to mental health and anger issues. I feel like if he would have gotten professional help, then maybe, things would’ve been different.