đź’” What it means to have grown up with divorced parents
Growing up with divorced parents meant your world didn't just break—it shattered into two irreconcilable realities that you had to navigate like separate countries with different rules and currencies of love.
You may have learned to become a social chameleon, developing different versions of yourself depending on which parent's house you were visiting. Your family broke into pieces, and you had to figure out how to exist in two separate worlds, often feeling caught in the middle of adult conflicts while caring for everyone's feelings except your own. You might have developed exceptional skills at reading emotional climates and managing complex relationship dynamics.
You may have witnessed your parents' relationship collapse, leaving you with a heightened awareness of cracks in your own relationships—constantly bracing for the inevitable moment when "forever" turns into "go to hell!" Your young heart learned that love comes with expiration dates, making you either avoid commitment entirely or test relationships to see if they'll survive your worst moments. The idea of being authentically yourself with just one person feels foreign when your survival depended on being different people for different parents.