I was my father's scapegoat. I left the family at 18 and had no contact with him until my mother died. Even then he was mean to me. It wasn't until our last conversation together that he told me he loved me, and I had said it first. Now with both parents gone I'm able to shake off the label for a while.

I was a people pleaser for many years. It served me well in the military and I got a lot of awards. It also made me a workaholic. Right now I'm over that and trying to cope with being on disability.