Characteristics of Adult Children of Alcoholics

Some characteristics I complied of COAs, children of alcoholics (also applies to those who grew up in a emotionally disruptive home):

   -the fear of loss of control
   -trust issues
   -avoidance of feelings
   -super responsibility/ super irresponsibility
   -judge themselves without mercy
   -have difficulty having fun
   -take themselves very seriously
   -have difficulty with intimate relationships
   -constantly seek approval and affirmation
   -feel that they are different from other people
   -become isolated
   -hard on themselves, often to the point of self-hatred
   -fear or feel uncomfortable around authority figures
   -uncomfortable when people focus on them
   -they have a great deal of anger inside of them
   -they keep others from getting to know them
   -they agree to activities that they later regret agreeing to
   -stuff their feelings
   -lose the ability to feel
   -view life as a victim
   -terrified of personal criticism
   -have low self-esteem

"I always find myself in the middle of chaos, never understanding how I got there."