It’s not that there is anything wrong with this type of behavior, except that the child might have a harder time developing her own sense of self-identity, independent of her parents’ thinking. This process in psychology is called individuation. It is critical to have accomplished this process before getting into a committed intimate relationship

They had all their eggs in one basket in terms of their psychological identity, which was based on their ability to perform their roles. I try to help them out of their identity crisis by helping them realize that there are other roles or identities that are very important in their lives. I want them to realize that they possess valuable personal

The language of the critical parent usually is made up of some basic phrases. The first critical parent phrase that I hear frequently is that “I should or shouldn’t” do something. I ask this person, “If someone else told you that you ‘should or shouldn’t’ do something without you asking for their input how would you feel?” Most adults would answer

The bottom line is that being involved with a dependent individual over time will destroy an individual’s self-esteem as a being a lover, spouse, or even a parent.

Not only does this couple have little sexual intimacy, they rarely go out on a date alone without other people being around. Outside of work life, they do everything with their children. It’s all about…

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When trying to identify your emotions, it’s best to try to use only one-word descriptions, such as angry, hurt, sad, pleased, happy, or scared.

It’s time to communicate like an adult. They need to communicate from the standpoint of the psychological adult, not the critical parent or their child. The adult phrase I suggest they use is traditionally called an “I message.” More specifically, I suggest they use the verbal phrase I want or I don’t want. This is what an adult says when she is

When I hear the saying, “You have to love yourself before you can love someone else,” it sounds great. But what does it mean? In practical terms, when a person respects and validates their own emotions, they will be involved only with someone who thinks the same way.

family. The “should” from my mother was an extreme position with no middle ground. I needed balance, so I gave myself a break, saying, “I could start a project and stop even though it wasn’t finished and focus my time on something else.”