The Emotional Incest Syndrome: What to Do When a Parent's Love Rules Your Life

Do these "endearments" sound familiar to you? "Of all my children, I expect the most of you." Translation: I've selected you to be the one to make my life worth living. "You've never caused me a minute of trouble." Translation: Ignore your own needs, I can't handle them. "You're the only one who truly understands me." Translation: I would be totally alone if it weren't for you. If so, you may have been a "chosen child," seemingly the focus of loving and devoted parents, but in reality a child walking a psychological tightrope-learning early on to deny your own needs in order to meet the emotional needs of a parent. Today, there is a name for this devastating form of child abuse: emotional incest. Here, Dr. Patricia Love offers adults real hope-and help in overcoming the hurtful legacy of being a chosen child. Based on proven therapeutic techniques and using real-life case histories, her total program of recovery will help you identify the signs of emotional incest, confront your parents-and your past-with love and understanding, disentangle your life from theirs, and create a positive relationship with your parents-and your own children.