The Helter Skelter scenario is an apocalyptic vision reportedly embraced by serial killer and cult leader Charles Manson and members of his "family" that led to several brutal murders and a multitude of ruined lives. It's much the same with Parental Estrangement. Except that with the Parental Estrangement scenario within families, the bodies are not physically dead, but the nothingness that is left within can feel like it, until we find ourselves on a healing path, make sens

A kinkeeper- the gatekeeper to the family, is a family member, usually, but not always, a woman, who takes on the role of maintaining family connections  and fostering a sense of solidarity within the family circle. Authentic kinkeepers play a key role in keeping the family together, acting as the emotional glue that holds things humming along despite family tensions that rise from time to time. It's a vital role in a world where connection with family is weakening, and ment

But I didn’t escape that life by cutting her off. I escaped by finding my real identity. It was within me all along, and despite everything, my mother is still an intrinsic part of me, despite having left this realm.

An adult child might feel that they lose themselves in the relationship, and don't return for fear of being drawn back into painful dynamics with their mother, or, in some cases, feel too guilty to face their mothers and are unable to get out of the corner they painted themselves into. The mother, who may then be dealing with depression and other issues, deals with any reconciliation attempts clumsily and may also be experiencing guilt and sitting in her unpainted corner.

Once limited to being an essential weapon for narcissists and psychopaths, dehumanization has seeped into many facets of life, as people struggle to survive and strive to thrive. Too many people choo se to dehumanize those around them as a response to conflicting motives, denying full humanity in others, cruelly inflicting suffering . The so-called personal growth through the generations has shifted from the stoic “Greatest Generation’s” selflessness and willingness to sacr

Parents, mothers in particular, are left reeling by parental estrangement, not only by the rejection, but by the confusion. How did this happen? Many only get to hear through the grapevine, or through angry confrontations, of some or other terrible misdeed they are accused of, that either never happened, never happened the way it was described, or is based on a series of debilitating circumstances or events in the life of the parent, with many fabricated frills bolstering the

Every single child deserves to be treated with dignity. It's their absolute human right. But as a human who enjoys rights, some duties limit these rights, although these duties only emerge as they age.