All of us here have been through something awful at the hands of someone else. In my case, it was my older brother. It's really complicated emotionally for me. I resent him but at the same time I still grew up with him and care for him. I reported him two years ago--the court process took a while but now he is dealing with the consequences of what he did. One year of jail and then probation and he is on the sex offender list. He says he is remorseful for his actions.

Anyway, I guess I'm just wondering if anyone here has forgiven their abuser- specifically if the person was in their family or someone close who cannot be cut out of your life completely. Can you ever have a normal familial relationship after something awful like this? I'm not quite ready to forgive yet but I just want to know if anyone has been able to talk normally with their abuser again. I would like to hear your stories if anyone has gone through something similar!