Joshua Jackson Believes His Absent Dad Helped Him Become the Man He Is Today

[shangri__la]

Joshua Jackson opens up about being the dad he never had to his little girl 💗 Check out his full interview: https://t.co/eOz3g6UVjt pic.twitter.com/xd73Z7y2u3
- The Kelly Clarkson Show (@KellyClarksonTV) May 3, 2023

The whole interviewOn today's session of celebrity therapy, Joshua Jackson talks to Kelly Clarkson about how his absent father

Comments

[marywebgirl]

Having your own kid brings up soooo many issues with your parents and how they raised you. Mine were OK but knowing what I know now I certainly wouldn't call them good parents. My husband's parents weren't the greatest either, and any time my MIL tries to offer "helpful" advice it's all I can do to bite my tongue because holy crap she should not be telling anyone how to be a mom.

[brokecouture]

Dang this hits close to home cause my grandpa just died and his memorial I today but I’m skipping it. I was all ready to go and fly into Detroit but the closer it got the more anxiety I started to feel because of all my pain and issues of not having my dad in my life when he lived down the street in a house with a wife and kids. Last family reunion I just kinda wandered through the whole thing by myself and felt like I was someone’s plus+ not actually a relative and that opened my old wounds. So when I tried to tell my dad he was just like “well, I hope you feel better.” Instead of like a simple “I’m sorry you feel that way” and so him not even being able to give me a simple sorry. He just said “I won’t be mad, I’m trying to be a good person.” Like what?? Don’t be a good person, be my dad? So I decided not to go but I feel guilty about it in a way cause I should be there right now

And whoa sorry for unloading all this on here lol ignore me

[ginainabottle]

Being a good person has nothing to do with making yourself uncomfortable to cater to other people's feelings, especially if those people don't take into account your feelings. Please don't feel bad for doing what's healthier for you <3

[brokecouture]

Thank you, I needed to hear that <3

[anterrabre]

No, you chose your own mental health over being placed in a situation that is not only uncomfortable, but where people really aren't interested in making you feel comfortable either. Do not spend one second feeling bad or like you need to apologize for that.

[ginainabottle]

Understandable although I don't subscribe to the 'people who hurt me have made me stronger' speech bc what truly made me stronger were the people who were my support system when I was putting together the pieces the assholes left me in. People who hurt me have only made me worse, less trustworthy and (sometimes unknowingly) hurtful as well. I've had a wonderful father so that shaped my view of the type of men I'm willing to let in my life bc there's no way I'm settling for (or allowing) anything less than great - even so I still fell into a few traps in my 20s, and I'm sure it could happen again. All of this to say that having a foundation of love and care is truly a privilege, and something I'll be forever thankful for throughout my whole existence in this earth.

That said, I do think it's amazing when people are able to resignify their pain and break the cycle of hurt bc I'm sure it's not easy at all.

[vanouria]

IA, re: what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. growing up I always thought it was such a huge compliment to be called strong or resilient and now I'm like, but wouldn't it have been better if I didn't have to deal with that at all? I do share the sentiment with Kelly and JJ that now I know exactly what not to do and how not to be, but a lot of it I didn't need to go through in order to know that I would never even think to be that way myself

[healthypanda]

I hate the expectation that we should assume that trauma made us into more resilient people. I don't want to take that away from anyone if that's how they truly feel about it, but I feel angry and resentful at the stuff I experienced, not gratitude. I think strength is inherent to the individual and not necessarily a byproduct of what they experienced.

[vanouria]

wow this made me tear up. my dad's not absent but I wish he would be and his presence had and continues to have a massively toxic impact on my life though we don't speak anymore. i've been thinking a lot about children and getting caught up in the more negative "what ifs" but this is a nice positive way of thinking of parenthood as something healing for yourself while setting your child up to never have the struggles you did

[deerlike]

My mother's trauma and abusive treatment of me as a child into early adulthood has resulted in me swearing off parenthood completely. Sorry to my ancestors, but the line ends with me (so the cycle won't be repeated).