Hanging in there

[sbradford2]

Hi everyone. I have been dating this older guy for a while now and we connect so well together. The only thing is that when I met him he was in a drug rehab program and he has told me that he really wants to change his life around and that he has never had anyone to truly love him. My family know of him and is against me dating him because of his past. But when I am with him that is not the person that I see. He had a speech impairment problem and mentioned that the reason that he started turning to drugs is because of the abuse in the past and he felt that he did not know how to express himself since people could not understand what he was saying. He is speaking a lot better now.

 

I must say that he treats me well. He has been talking about marriage lately and how he has always wanted to be a family man. He has no kids. I truly care for this man. But the only thing that is holding me back is the fact that he has a criminal history. Now I must say that he was honest with me since day one and appreciated that he did not hide it from me. He missed his court date while he was in the program so he went to turn himself in so that he could get it over with and put it all behind him. So he will be getting out soon and I am unsure of what I could do to help him. My question is in what way do you feel that I could be of help to him? I am a loving and giving person so even if we never get married I still want to be there for him.

[nice-easy-day]

I all for giving people second chances in life as I've needed them myself. I have a few family members and friends who are similar to the man you described. Honestly, most people with that baggage you're going to want to stay away from romantically. Just make it a rule of thumb.

 

With that said. You can help him by supporting him and being his friend. I wouldn't be a girlfriend to him until you really get to know him and he proves himself over a couple of years. This is one of those cases where "friends first" is a must.