Hey friends! Today, I'm diving into a topic that touches so many of us in deeply personal ways: family estrangement between parents and their adult children.

I walk through six relationship patterns I see frequently in my clinical work that quietly erode family connection over time — from treating boundaries as rejection and using guilt as a communication tool, to refusing to acknowledge past mistakes and talking more than you listen. These patterns apply to both sides of the estrangement.

I also speak directly to therapists about how to help clients begin initiating these hard conversations — and to individuals who are doing their own work, wherever you are in this process.

If you are estranged from a parent or an adult child, or if you're working with clients who are, take a moment for yourself and join me on From Both Sides Of The Couch — Why Family Relationships Break: What Parents vs. Adult Children Really Think.

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Dr. Laurie Bruce is a clinical psychologist and mindfulness coach. She received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology in 2000. Her expertise is in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), which is a treatment that combines both traditional cognitive and behavioral strategies with Eastern Mindfulness practices. She is also a Certified Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapist and completed a year-long intensive training through the Integrative Psychiatry Institute. She’s passionate about the safe, legal, and ethical use of psychedelic medicines to help address trauma, mood, and anxiety disorders and for personal and spiritual development.

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#FamilyEstrangement #ParentAdultChildRelationship #FamilyHealing