People often assume abusive parents/family are always bad, but it’s not that simple.

[Melissallgall]

We tend to hold on to those small, rare moments of kindness, believing they show who they truly are underneath the chaos. It’s in those fleeting glimpses that we think there’s hope, that maybe the good will one day outweigh the bad.

But the reality is, those moments are like flashes in a storm—brief, deceptive, and never enough to calm the chaos. We convince ourselves that the good is just buried deep inside them, waiting to surface. In truth, it’s the constant turmoil, unpredictability, and emotional whiplash that defines the relationship. Yet, because of those few glimpses of what could have been, we want to hold on, hoping for a version of them that never fully existed.

[NaomiTCOOKIES]

You articulate so well what I've been wanting to tell people. My friends celebrated when I revealed my decision to go no contact. They were happy for me. But I was heartbroken. It is really not an easy decision to make when you think of those glimpses of what could've been.

[Bbg_Jisung]

This is so true it is so hard completely hate them when I do have some old moments 💔

[jokacola]

i can’t wait to go no contact but at the same time i don’t want to have to go no contact