The Day My Family Fell Apart - Lesson In Resilience

The Day My Family Fell Apart 

I was eleven when my parents separated. Suddenly, Mum had a new partner, Dad had a new partner, their kids moved in, and my brother was packed off to Melbourne. One day we were a family; the next, strangers under one roof.

I felt let down. If even parents could be unreliable, who could I trust? I built a wall of independence to protect myself from disappointment. It worked—sort of. But walls don’t just keep pain out. They keep connection out, too.

That lesson took me decades to learn.

Resilience isn’t just about hardening up. True resilience is knowing when to lower the wall and let people back in. Change may force you to build defences, but growth requires you to take them down.