Hi, Torn Mind,

Thanks for your post. Sounds like neglect to me too. And, yes, neglect is a form of abuse. (Some types are unlawful, e.g., starvation, but withholding of affection and advice, is not.) You describe it perfectly, there is something missing but you can't put your finger on it. It is difficult dealing with neglect issues for that reason. Somehow, though I was neglected, I had inner strength, a sense of self importance, an independent streak and liked to learn.

To a good extent, it is possible to teach yourself a lot of things that were never taught to you by your parents. I know that I always felt behind others developmentally - I was and to some extent still am. I read that being patient with yourself is helpful and it helped a lot. As you can see from my posts elsewhere, I haven't been able to teach myself everything. There's hurt/pain to deal with/overcome. But it is possible to have a life.