Maybe an inside thought but-
My dad had another stroke this past weekend and still cannot move his left side. Which is quite unfortunate considering he’s left handed. Me and my sisters just get small updates from our bio-grandma who my father is currently living with as he has refused to talk to me or my sisters since early February of this year.
He’s clearly depressed and I can understand why after his addiction has caused him to lose, quite literally, everything. At the same time he refuses to seek out professional help from therapists which is what he truly needs to understand and combat his addiction.
The plus side? He has been sober for the first time in over a year but unfortunately he isn’t much healthier at all. According to my bio-grandma, he rarely leaves his bed except to eat and use the restroom. And last I heard he was drinking, on average, 26 cans of pop a day. Good lawd is that unhealthy but it’s his addictive personality and that oral fixation that he can’t get past without the help of a professional.
And me and my sisters are not professionals and have no foundation for him to lean on.
My bio-grandma has said that he has been talking about moving to Mexico so he can be by himself.
I didn’t go visit him in the hospital this time around and neither did my siblings. I know my dad well and I know he wouldn’t have wanted any of us to see him in this condition anyways. My sisters agreed with this sentiment as well.
Anyways- it’s really strange. He wasn’t the best dad growing up but he definitely wasn’t the worst. He made it to nearly every game, recital, and concert that me and my sisters had and I can’t think of a lot of positive talks we had but there are a few very heartfelt talks that I remember him having with me as I cried my eyes out in my loft bed as a teenager. However, since my mom divorced him back in 2012 he has held little to no contact with us; basically me and my siblings entire adult lives. He’s the stereotypical dad that says “the phone works both ways”. Very very strange concept to me that a parent can seemingly stop caring for their own children.
This is most definitely such a TMI of an update but it’s been very hard for me to wrap my head around my relationship with my father these past 5 years or so. The past three years he has ended up in the hospital due to his addiction and the effects it has had on his body.
The first hospital trip- withdrawal.
The second hospital trip- drinking bender ending in a stroke from head trauma. (He was wasted and fell head first onto a sidewalk).
The third hospital trip- a second stroke from a “brain bubble”.
I don’t know a lot about strokes honestly but I’ve been doing my research this past week trying to learn more and prepare myself for why my father’s future may look like from here on out. After a couple of near death experiences and one life watch via helicopter I would have thought that he’d try harder to turn his life around but he just doesn’t seem to want it.
I apologize for the cryptic update. Obviously I’m still writing. It really is the one thing that keeps me sane but it’s been a little difficult to focus on work plus all of the strange emotions I’ve been having here recently.
I’m currently trying to throw all of my energy into eating well and creating my new illustration portfolio.
I’ll continue to work hard and as always I will continue to write my thoughts down as I move forward ♡