Weighing in. I had a pretty idyllic childhood. My parents weren't perfect, but I think they were solid. They were not helicopter parents, and they certainly weren't "my kid is always right and everyone else (including teachers, other parents, etc) are always wrong!" parents. They gave us freedom but held us responsible for our mistakes. And I feel we were brought up with a good sense of morality, ethics and what it means to be a good person.
My W's childhood was not idyllic. For the first 12 years of her life her dad abused her mom. Her mom finally had the courage to get out of the abusive marriage. And her mom did a good job of raising my W. My wife too was brought up with a good sense of morality, ethics and what it means to be a good person. BUT, she has hang ups. Related to her dad, the way he was an absent father, then tried to buy her love and affection. He would berate her verbally when he felt slighted, and then shower her with cash and gifts to be a "good" dad.
My W has hang-ups from all of that, no doubt. But her good sense of morals, ethics and being a good person far out weighs those hang-ups. Do people have hang-ups from childhood? Sure. Can they overcome them? Absolutely.
So I think both sides make valid arguments. The key is that a bad childhood is no excuse not to be the best you can be. Lot of resources and ways to get over a poor upbringing!
Last edited by SteveLW; 08/31/2106:27 PM.
M(53), W(54),D(19) M-23, T-25 Bomb Drop - Dec.23, 2017 Ring and Piecing since March 2018
