Growing up, I developed a deep need for validation. Validation of my feelings. I’m assuming this is the same for most children: we look to our parents and other people around us for guidance. We are praised for doing things “right” and told off for doing things “wrong.” I’d say that most of us are raised with a binary view of the world: it is good and that is bad. It is normal and abnormal. Appropriate and inappropriate. And those seem clear cut – only that they aren’t and growing up we are always trying to figure out what is expected of us and it can feel like walking a tightrope. Read More...