Jealousy, mistrust erode relationships
DEAR ABBY: Myboyfriend and I love each other. But we are both so jealous we fight every day. The only time we get along is during sex and right after.
Recently, he found an email I had written when we first got together in reply to a message I had received about becoming an escort. I didn’t follow through, and I have never cheated. I was broke, and he had just been sent back to prison.
How can I earn his trust and keep our relationship from becoming toxic? — Trying to Make It Work
DEAR TRYING: If the only time you and your boyfriend get along is during sex or right after, your relationship is already toxic. Rather than fight and accuse each other every day, couples in healthy relationships build each other up and support one another. Total honesty is essential. If he can’t believe what you tell him, there can be no love.
DEAR ABBY: Iama 13-year-old girl and I hate my family. I have had an eating disorder for three years, and my parents haven’t noticed. I think my parents hate me. Theytrytostuffmeintoa mannequin shell that doesn’t fit. It’s like I am a doll and not a person. I don’t know what to do, and I am suicidal. But when I think about the ambitions I have, I’m able to withstand another day. Please help me. — Depressed Teen in Washington
DEAR TEEN: Because you feel your parents may not take you seriously, tell a trusted teacher or counselor everything you have written to me, including your thoughts of suicide. Eating disorders can be very serious, and they are not always obvious. Because your feelings of depression are so strong you sometimes feel you can’t go on, you need more help than a columnist can give. Please don’t wait.
DEAR ABBY: When did it become someone’s right to walk into a business with a pet? Some of those animals hike their leg, and their owners never offer an apology or to clean it up. Dogs have jumped up on other customers while their owners said, “Don’t worry. He won’t bite.”
I’ve gone through training on service animals, and these are definitely not service animals. What happened to common courtesies? — Taken Aback in Oklahoma
DEAR TAKEN ABACK:
The demise of common courtesies happened right around the time people began believing they were the exception. When ADA legislation was passed, it was so people with disabilities would have access to things able-bodied people take for granted. What you are experiencing is an abuse of that law by individuals who have no sense of shame.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www. Dearabby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.