It's difficult to live with your parents as an adult. When my husband got out of the military and we returned to the area that we were from, the house that we had planned on renting fell through and we ended up living with my parents for 6 weeks. It was the longest 6 weeks of my life.

You would think that experience would have made me more... informed, compassionate... as to what my children would feel coming home but here's what it boils down to. My children have a home with us for as long as they want free of charge. BUT there are house rules to follow. Logically I know that while my daughter was away at college she was able to come and go as she pleased, but while she was living here summers, holidays, and after she graduated she needed to let us know where she was going and what time she would be coming home. I understand that fear of not knowing where your child is. She may not have let her roommate know where she was, but I'm not her roommate, I'm her mother. It's not logical, but it's different.

My father's "sense of humor" was sometimes... cruel. I see now that was not his intent, but it sure did sting at the time. Right now it seems that you have to make the best of a bad situation. You can teach an old dog new tricks. When your father makes a hurtful comment, take a breath and say "that was really mean, cruel, (insert adjective)" and walk out of the room. Make your bedroom your haven. Read in bed. Is there a library or a coffee house nearby? Spend your time there reading or doing homework. Better yet find a park.

What would you do if this was a roommate rather than a parent? What tools would you utilize to make your situation more bearable? Your parents can push your buttons because they've installed them . Try to distance yourself emotionally a little bit. Right now you're raw because one situation compounds the next. Have you asked that your father come to a therapy session?