Dumping on the THR recipient

[Guest guest]

I wish to ask if anyone else has had this experience. I have

a " friend " who denies that I have any physical problems ( " It's all in

your head, " etc.), despite the fact that the doctors certainly would

not have given me a THR before the age of 50 unless my hip was a

total mess! Aside from denying that I have any " real " physical

problems, he also makes fun of my pain and my limp, grabbing my cane,

and mimicking the way I walk. Obviously, this is not a true friend,

and I have had to make the difficult decision to cut my ties with

him. I may also add that I was born with congenital hip dysplasia,

and although my case was relatively mild, and I spent the most

physically active and happy childhood possible (boy, was I a tree-

climber!), my father (let's not go there; he had his own problems),

used to taunt me with cries of " Cripple! Cripple! " , even though I

neither limped nor had mobility problems until three years ago, when

I was 45. I think that my father's vanity was hurt by having an

imperfect child. This does not excuse him, but it does explain why I

simply cannot bear being abused for a physical disability. I am not

even asking for sympathy for the pain and mobility problems; I just

don't want to be cruelly treated. Anyway, thank you for listening

to my vent, and I am eager to hear (well, not really, I don't want to

hear stories of other people's emotional pain!), if others have had

this kind of experience. In the case of a friend, you can end the

frienship, but it's not always possible to simply turn off a

relative. Aagh!!!