We might ‘dissociate’ and do the opposite: we check out, numb ourselves, engage in escapism, or fixate harder on connecting with others. In a state of dissociation, it is hard to advocate for our needs, our boundaries, and our limits. In addition, many of us have excellent auto-pilot functions and masking skills for when we dissociate, which can... See more

To avoid the bad feelings, the child slowly learns to identify only with what he thinks of as “good” and to deny anything “bad” as part of who he is. He actually starts limiting his identity to only include what he has come to believe is “acceptable” in the eyes of his parents. Yet another child may despair altogether of getting any good strokes

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