I read somewhere that the childhood stuff and previous trauma doesn't go away or lessen over the years, if you don't deal with it everything gets bigger and scarier and crashes over you. I think this has happened to our WASes and the walking away is not being able to cope with it and being too scared to address it. In your case Alison you are being brave enough to deal with it and heal from it, and yes it's tough but it'll be worth it. And there are days when you just don't want to face it and want to just get on with your life without this stuff to work through, that is only natural.
I'm sorry about how you're feeling about your inlaws. It seems like they genuinely did see you as part of the family and who only knows what they feel now. Probably pure awkwardness and confusion, I would think if they're decent people. And an unwillingness to get involved in any way. I hope you manage to look after yourself in a healthy way and get past the family time without you xx
