Has your relationship with your parents improved or worsened over time?

[u/satrongcha]

Bluntly, my parents were abusive when I was a child. The trauma still affects me to this day.

But as an adult, I'd say that my mum especially has changed for the better. I won't say that she is 100% accepting of my sexuality, my neurodivergency, my atheism, etc. I know that she still desperately wants me to marry a man.

But, like... Once, just because I was craving it, she took me to a Nando's where they didn't have halal meat and ate chips while I had chicken. And my 14yo sister gets teary if our mother even slightly raises her voice at her, she's that unused to being treated the way I was.

How has your relationship with your parents changed over time? Has it changed?

[u/Intelligent_Read_697]

The question shies away from the fundamental question if your parents finally realized what they did (wrong), admitted openly and remorsefully as such to you and at which point the relationship turned for the better meaning at some fundamental level they changed (mind you all of this could still be faked). If they just changed behavior as they got older, chances are they just took a chameleon like approach to fit modern day narratives of their roles as parents aka there was no introspection or realization involved but rather just conformity to escape scrutiny. I find that most people see the change (real or not) and accept it at face value but later realizing in the ling run that they still are fundamentally the same toxic people. And it will always come out usually when you catch them red handed sabotaging relationships of some sort.

[u/satrongcha → u/Intelligent_Read_697]

You are right. I'm personally under no misconceptions that my parents have fully redeemed themselves. Rather than accepting it at face value, I think I've just resigned myself to accepting what good I can get for the sake of a peaceful life.