I was abused as a child and I have a drug habit.
I also have (in the past, not so muych now) suffored from eating disorder.
Eating disorders are often linked to sexual abuse in childhood and alot of girls at my old clinic were sexually abused.
I was physically abused by both my parents but not sexually. I dont think I was ever sexually abused. My cousin did some things to me when I was 6 and got me to do some to her, but she was only 8 at the time so she didn't understand either, I later found out my uncle (her dad) went to jail for molesting her and her sisters so it makes sense, and I don't blame her at all, I don't feel sexually abused, she was a child too, neither of us really understood. And it wasn't horrific experiences, I used to just think "Oh crud she wants to play this game again lame, oh well if I let her play this game I'll tell her we have to do one I choose next and I choose barbie" lol.
But the beatings my parents gave me, I feel that was abuse, especially the way they would gang up on me. I wanted so much to turn to mum and have her be on my side when did hit me, or turn to dad when mum did it and he be on my side, but they were a solid unit, I've never in my life seen or heard them argue ever (they must've done it secretly)
Mum would hold me down so dad could whip me because I "wriggled too much" mum would pull my hair and drag me across the floor by it, and strangle me for things like being late for chior (I didnt want to go to choir, chior was embarrassing, I COULD NOT SING!!, i knew it, the school knew it, mum somehow couldn't realise) and if I was in trouble mum would tell dad to 'sort me out'. he had this belt (which was from a horses saddle complete with the metal buckle) he called it "big red" and told us it was red with the blood of 1000 children (it was quite obviously red from paint). but they would also use electrical cord, many wooden spoons were broken on my arse, etc.
The deputy principal at intermediate school (age 11-12)saw things like rope burn on my neck and thought I'ld tried to kill myself, he would ring mum trying to help unaware that the marks were actually from her, and then she would be mad at me, thinking I'ld been saying things at school when I hadn't and I would get in more trouble, I remember not being able to get that deputy principal away from me all i wanted was for him to leave me alone.
I never really did anything bad either, I just wanted to be a normal kid and my parents were super religeous and super strict. I wasnt allowed to hang out with friends, I had to come straight home from school. obviously I was never grounded because my entire childhood was one big grounding I wasnt allowed to do anything anyway, so if I'ld been bad they wouldn't ground me like my friends parents, they would hit me. but being bad to them was like, not eating all my veggies, or coming home from school half an hour late because I wanted to hang with my friends, saying i didnt like church, etc.
When I got old enough to realise other kids were allowed to do all this shit and I was the dweeb coz I couldnt go to any parties I was invited to, I starting to withdraw from my friends because it was embarrassing, and occasionally I would sneak out anyway and not turn up home till a few days later because I knew as soon as I got home I'ld get a beating so I would put it off.
I had an Eminem CD in intermediate school (when I was 11 years old) and dad heard that it had swearing in it so I wasn't allowed it and they were gunna take it from me. So I needed to hide it, I found an old tape player and opened it up, I ripped out all the circuit boards with my bare hands, cut them up a bit, and once there was enough hollowed out I put the CD in there and closed it up. Mum and Dad whipped me and whipped me until I told them where it was, I wasn't going to give in, I lasted 6 hours, but then I couldn't take it anymore. and then I thought if I'd just given it to them in the first place I wouldn't hurt so bad, but at the same time I wish i perservered and stood up for myself and didnt give it to them at all.
When I was going out for days at a time, mum and dad had decided i was having sex and took me to the hospital to find out if I was still a virgin, the doctors said they werent allowed to check that without my permission and I said no coz i WAS a virgin and I was too scared for someone to look at my special area because I was so shy about that sort of thing, but mum and dad assumed i wouldnt let them because i'ld been having sex . So when we got home my dad was hitting me, and thats the one time I decided to hit him back. he was un scathed but it made him even angrier and he punched me so hard it knocked my jaw out and it was dislocated hanging there. he didn't take me to the doctors to fix it, he sent me to my room where I lay awake all night and then he popped it back in himself the next morning (hurt more than when he knocked it out!!) After this he kicked me out of home and gave me a tresspassing notice so I couldn't come back, I lived on the streets I wasn't old enough to get a job, burgerking wouldn't even hire me, and I tried very hard not to have to leave school (eeventually I did leave). I decided I would rather become a prostitute and know I worked for everything and earnt it fair and square all on my own than become a theif, and they seemed to be the only choices I had ( I was NOT about to go get a foster family, I didn't like being told what to do by my parents, I wasn't going to be told what to do by NOT my parents) So I made it on my own and ended up making some bad choices such as getting too into drugs.
It makes me angry because my parents wern't like other parents of abused kids who got drunk and took their anger out on their children without concious decision. My parents truelly believed what they were doing was the right thing, that it was disciplin. And they knowingly beast me. They did it because they loved me. That's fucked up. I remeber heaps of times I would make all the bruises and welts look worse than they were with make up and go sit in the lounge thinking maybe they'd feel remorse for what they did, but it never happened, they never even noticed I was sitting there.
I've talked to them about it now, looking for an apology for what they did. All I got was an apology for the fact I can't see they were doing the "right thing" they're sorry I "feel that way" but never admit they were wrong or made any mistake, and they never apologised at all for anything.
sorry my post is really long, but it feels good to get the full storey down.
I think what fucked my life the most was me withdrawing from my friends and becoming so shy. theres alot of social skills I missed out on learning lol. And once the parents were gone and I was able to socialise, I'ld been under a rock so long I didnt understand what anyone was talking about, I didnt know about what bands and what movies were "cool" hell most of the slang they used I didnt understand because I'ld been so isolated and the men i worked for wern't from my generation lol, I was too embarrassed to admit I dodnt know what any of these words meant so it took a long tiome for me to try to integrate back into socialising with friends etc. I still get shy and nervous with people now, and I used to be so loud and outspoken lol.