Family Secrets

My family secret is on my father’s side of the family, involving his younger brother. He has a large family of six siblings, being the oldest of four boys and three girls. In such a large family, secrets are inevitable and can often be hid for years. Once I grew older and began to understand more things, I started to see problems happening with my uncle. He was in an accident and suffered more severe injuries than the doctors originally had thought, and had problems because of it. Along with being diagnosed with diabetes, he was prescribed pain medication that he began to take advantage of. After losing his job and family, he became involved in much heavier drug use. This was the family secret hidden for so long. For years I had no idea that my uncle was a drug addict and often lived on the streets. My father began to warn us not to open the door if he came to our house, and I often overheard him talking to other family members about lending my uncle money. I became afraid of my uncle and afraid of my dad’s new relationship with him. He wanted nothing to do with him for a very long time and he was subsequently “removed” from the family. This is something that has not changed, despite other family members attempts to help him. He has taken advantage of my grandmother, aunts, uncle, and especially my father for money and shelter, but no real progress has been made.