As a 12 year old
Hey people ! I’m new here and wanted to share My story. When I was 12 I went to Tenerife (Spain) for a pretty long vacation with my family. We found a cute little Italian cafe and became close with the staff there. The owner was a 60 year old man who made me and my brother laugh all the time, he seemed like a really trustworthy person. So we started to go to that cafe pretty much everyday. One day, we stayed at the cafe for longer than usual, and my mom had to do something at the hotel so she left me and my brother there. At around 9-10 pm my mother called asking if the owner of the cafe could take me and my brother home. At the time I didn’t know, the old was probably drunk. We took 10-15 minutes to get to the hotel, and as we got closer to our destination he started touching upper body parts if you know what I mean. While walking. And my brother was walking just 2-3 meters in front of us and didn’t notice anything. The old man also called me “my booby” while he did that. I immediately pushed him to the right telling him to let go, but as a joke (I was a very shy girl and didn’t know how to answer these types of provocations). I then quickened the pace and called my brother so he could walk with us so fortunately nothing more happened. I told my mom about this but she didn’t send me to therapy or anything cause it didn’t feel necessary. Now I think it does. After a few months my mom invited over a friend of her, who also worked as a babysitter and took care of us when we were babies. This time it was a young man, around 35 years old. I was really attached to him because when we were kids he also visited us a couple of times and became like an older brother. One night he stayed over. I was playing with the computer but had a problem with something so I asked him for help. He sat right next to me and after a while I told him I missed having him around the house. So probably to thank him he said aww my little girl and kissed me at the corner of my lips and hugged me. I was shocked. and the thing that hurt me the most is that he did this to me, not a stranger. I trusted him.I know nothing very bad happened (he still shouldn’t have kissed me on the lips) but it reminded me of my holiday in Tenerife... Lots of time passed and when I had my first boyfriend, I told him about this. He said he would take care for me and be there for me but still he broke up with me after a couple of days. I should also say that my biological father left my mom, my and my brother when we were born. I’ve never met him. So right now I’m not sure what I should be feeling. I’m not sure whether I need therapy cause nobody knew about this until I told my mom and she did not take action. I’m not sure whether should I trust men anymore. They’ve let me down a couple of times now, and I’m still in need of affection. I need somebody who will really love me and stay with me no matter what. Anyway, thank you guys for reading all of this.
@ann012
Dear Ann:
I am sorry for all you have gone through.
Those episodes you tell are cases of abuse. No doubt about that.
The need for Therapy is very subjective. If you think Therapy can help you, and you can afford it, you definitely should go for it.
In any case, sound Therapy can only do good, even to people without any strong emotional issues.
Regarding men... there are many good men out there. For sure all of my male friends, who I know deeply, are very good people. I have met many male Members and Listeners in 7 Cups that are wonderful persons too.
The process of finding a new partner after a disappointing breakup is a difficult one. You are right to feel distrustful, skeptical, and cautious about men in general right now.
I encourage you to read the 7 Cups guide on dealing with Breakups HERE
On top of this challenge, socializing has become very difficult (depending on where you live) during this health crisis.
As soon and to the extent that it is possible in your area, I encourage you to do a proactive search for a new partner, by telling your friends you are looking for someone trustworthy, by joining mixed groups with similar interests like yours (many can be found on Meetup.com), and in general by looking for groups of good, "quality men" in your area.
Try to extend your circle of friends as much as you can, and look for a new partner through trusty references.
I hope these ideas, based on my personal experience, can help you get "somebody who will really love you and stay with you no matter what".
In the meanwhile, seek emotional support among your closest friends, and by continuing being active in this Community.
Thank you very much for posting and sharing here your experiences and thoughts !
I wish you all the best.
Keep in touch !
Marcelo.
I’m here if you want to talk to someone or just need a friend. I know how it is to want the attention and can lead to bad stuff if very desperate. Feel comfortable to reach out anytime or not at all