Dear Christina:

I can’t think of a child not being jealous, not being significantly distressed when she loses the attention of the most important person in her life.

“deep down I was jealous that I had to share my dad’s attention with her. I didn’t realize that when I was younger”- I think you did realize it when you were younger, but you did what children do, remove distress from awareness, because being well aware of distress day after day, week after week, year after year,  for whole six years (which for a child is eternity), is unbearable.

Maybe it seems to you that the kiss on the ear of your boyfriend’s roommate was such a horrible thing because as a child you felt that horrible when you witnessed your father kiss your step mother, or show her affection otherwise. What do you think?

I will soon be away from the computer for about fifteen hours. I will be glad to read more from you when I am back.

anita