I came across a great article in Psychology Today on Emotional Neglect. The article is called “8 Signs of Emotional Neglect in a Family” by Jonice Webb, PhD. The impact of neglect in families is often underestimate and may not be viewed as traumatizing to a child. Please click the link below to see the full article.
8 Signs of Emotional Neglect to Watch For in Your Family
- Your family conversations tend to be on surface topics, meaning they are seldom about emotional, meaningful, painful, or negative things. This may even make it boring.
- You sometimes feel an unexplained resentment or anger toward your parents (which you may feel guilty about).
- You go to family events with hopes of enjoying yourself, but you often come away feeling empty or disappointed.
- Difficult or interpersonal problems in the family are generally ignored instead of addressed directly.
- It feels like your siblings are competing with each other, but you’re not sure for what.
- Affection in your family is expressed via action (doing things for people) and not so much by words or emotional expression.
- Emotion–perhaps only negative emotions, but maybe all–seems taboo in your family.
- You feel surprisingly lonely or left out when you’re with your family.”
Source: 8 Signs of Emotional Neglect in a Family by Sonic Webb, PhD – Psychology Today
