Hi, Chick, You’re not rambling on at all! Your questions and comments mean a lot to me. Thank you so much for participating in this important way.

That is truly sad and scary that your friend tried to commit suicide. I’m so very sorry to hear this. Thank goodness that someone happened to find her in time.

To me, I totally understand that Janie didn’t tell her husband and that the abuse continued with her father, even after she was married—that she wasn’t able to stop it. You’re absolutely right: this is all about power and control. Even though, in terms of age, she was an adult, still, emotionally, how could she have grown up since her father had stolen her childhood from her at such an early age? Even though my father stopped molesting me when I left home for college, I, too, was trapped in an emotionally immature period. That’s why the sexual addiction continued for years; I continued to act out the behavior my father had taught me. Since my father, like Janie’s, stole my sense of “self,” I couldn’t protect myself. In other words, I had NO sense of my own power. And it sounds as if the same is true for Janie. I truly hope that now Janie can find the help she deserves. The journey is long. But there IS help and hope out there! Thanks for sharing this with us, Chick! Sue