Yeah, my mom is a classic co-dependent. She was just trying to survive and is a loving, strong woman. But she also suffered from depression and reinforced a feeling of helplessness in me. My dad's alcoholism was just something we kids learned to suffer through silently. I've always been able to scuffle through life somehow. But now I feel I am sliding off the face of the earth. Lifting this burden of shame is like trying to turn my blue eyes to brown. Identifying it is one thing. Healing will take a miracle.