You don’t have to be hit, screamed at, or abandoned to grow up with deep emotional wounds. Sometimes the most lasting pain comes from parents who smiled on the outside — but couldn’t truly see, hold, or care for who you were.
Dr. Lindsay Gibson is a clinical psychologist and the author of five books, including the bestselling Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents. Her work has helped put a name to the pain so many of us spent years minimizing or couldn’t quite explain.
🔑 Key takeaways from this episode:
- What emotionally immature parenting looks like—and how it hides in “normal” families and high-functioning dysfunction.
- How conditional love and emotional reactivity lead to chronic self-doubt and fear of authentic connection.
- What parentification is—and how being your parent’s emotional support blurs the line between love and survival.
- The invisible wounds of emotional neglect: never feeling seen, soothed, or safe—despite having “everything you needed.”
- Why some adult children blame themselves and seek healing, while others deflect, deny, and avoid accountability.
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