Dear bricklady:

Regarding the thought that Brickman is sending mixed signals: remember that his initial assertion was to end ALL contact with you, which was a very clear signal. It was you who approached him repeatedly, individually and through mutual friends, to take a middle way: have you come over less often, and so forth.

I think your pain, currently, has to do not only with the current situation, but with what pushed you so intensely into adopting this instant family concept, the loneliness before this strong attachment. Did you talk with your therapist about your attachment-history, starting with your parents, as the child that you were?

anita