It is a tough realization when you get older to look back on the past. It is on a case-by-case basis, but for some of us, it was good, bad, or somewhere in between, with a mix of both. For a lot of us who suddenly started to see a shift where parents became toxic, it is a stark contrast between when we were infants, toddlers, little kids, until we were teenagers and young adults. This is where there was a shift, and it can seem that it defined everything in your life, but it didn’t.
If you’re reading this, this means you probably overcame it by being a better man, but most importantly, a better person. I remember years back, when I encountered various people who would always comment on how I came from a good family. In my head, I used to laugh a bit and wonder if only they knew. In reality, it means you were around toxic people, but you did not let that stop you, and it is not the defining factor of your story. This means they didn’t really raise you because you had to ignore all the toxicity, but also to trust your own judgement and to practically raise yourself.
Son in the Shadows: "Navigating Life as the Black Sheep of Narcissistic Parents" 