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Eleanor grew up in an unstable environment with her parents unable to consistently provide for her basic needs. On this day, Eleanor's Mother spilled wine all over Eleanor's favorite bear. And instead of comforting Eleanor while she cried over this, her mother belittled and yelled and Eleanor for expressing her emotions. The crisis at this stage is between trusting that the people around you care for and about you or believing that the only one who can care for you is yourself. -
On this day, Eleanor (age 14) decides to legally emancipate herself from her parents after they forget her birthday again and reveals that she has been working two jobs to pay this as well as her own studio apartment. The crisis in this scenario is between whether one able to figure out who they are or not. With Eleanor working two jobs in her teenage years on top of school, she has very little time and support to figure out who she really is, causing insecurity masked as cruelness. -
The crisis at this stage is between allowing yourself to be venerable with other or being guarded/cruel to protect yourself from the pain intimacy can cause. When Eleanor first meets her new neighbor Tahini, she feels threatened by Tahini's bid for connection and makes fun of her new neighbor. However, when Eleanor finds Tahini alone crying a few days later, Eleanor stops to comfort Tahini and open up to her new friend. This is the start of Eleanor being able to form real relationships.