A quarter of adults report being estranged from at least one parent, and while this might be a mother or father’s worst nightmare, it usually doesn’t happen for no reason. Moms and dads with children who have cut off contact have recently been opening up on Reddit about what led to their estrangement, so we’ve gathered some of their most honest responses below. Keep reading to find a conversation with Empty Nest Coach Pamela Henkelman, and be sure to upvote the replies that hit home for you.
warrant2k , Kindel Media / Pexels Report
GeronimoJak , RF..studio / Pexels Report
basketma12 , Keira Burton / Pexels Report
“Dr. Joshua Coleman lists six common reasons for estrangement: tension with a son or daughter-in-law; mental illness, addiction or abuse; the child has a therapist; divorce; feeling too close to the parent; and disagreement about choices, values or lifestyle,” the coach shared.
brotogeris1 , Vitaliy Rigalovsky / Unsplash Report
RefrigeratorSalt9797 , Kampus Production / Pexels Report
twowaysplit , Brett Sayles / Pexels Report
bibliosapiophile Report
ConfectionaryRats , Valeriia Miller / Unsplash Report
ThenIGotHigh81 Report
“Unhealthy children will blame the parents. It’s a complicated relationship. Dr Joshua Coleman recommends writing a letter of amends to open the conversation,” Pamela continued.
G1optimusprime , Kelly / Pexels Report
BearSef , CDC / Unsplash Report
RustBeltPGH , RDNE Stock project / Pexels Report
“Psychologist and author of Rules of Estrangement, Dr. Joshua Coleman recommends this script: Dear Son/Daughter, I’m writing to see if it’s possible to open up a dialogue with you. I know that you wouldn’t have this time apart from me if it wasn’t the healthiest thing for you to do. With that being said, I don’t completely understand why you cut off ties with me.”
“It’s clear I have significant blind spots in either how I raised you or things I’ve done while you’re an adult, and I’m writing to have better understanding,” Pamela continued. “Would you feel comfortable letting me know? I promise to read it from the perspective of listening and learning and not in any way to defend myself. Love, Mom”
vand3lay1ndustries Report
ImACrawley , Jason Toevs / Pexels Report
angryshark Report
Wrong-Half Report
horseloverfat42 , Michael Burrows / Pexels Report
Substantial_Lake_980 , Pixabay / Pexels Report
Notfromiowa45 , Nicola Barts / Pexels Report
Crankyolelady_1967 , Karolina Kaboompics / Pexels Report
NAparentheses Report
Uglypants_Stupidface Report
Hey__Jude , cottonbro studio / Pexels Report
redbirdrising Report
saudiaramcoshill Report
PiesAteMyFace Report
Exciting_Raspberry79 , Nik Shuliahin 💛💙 / Unsplash Report
djinnisequoia , Blue Bird / Pexels Report
Puzzleheaded-Fix3359 Report
FizzlePop13 Report
Follow Bored Panda on Google News!
Follow us on Flipboard.com/@boredpanda!
