Parents Are Abandoning Their Adult Children

3 Little Epiphanies

3 Little Epiphanies

1. Many adults are going to their parents, saying, 'Here's a problem in our relationship,' and instead of working through it, the parent just disappears. No response. No conversation. Just silence.
2. Therapy speak continues to be a force for good on reality TV.
3. Should your parent get to control your life if they give you money?

"We would rather believe in a ‘dark figure in the bushes’ than admit that most harm to children comes from trusted family members."

Listen to the February 20, 2025 Q&A

Many adults are going to their parents, saying, 'Here's a problem in our relationship,' and instead of working through it, the parent just disappears. No response. No conversation. Just silence.

Whenever I speak about adults who are estranged from their parents, I encounter this false narrative that adults are the ones cutting off their parents. The parent wants closeness and a relationship, the adult child does not. But, I’ve been hearing the opposite more and more at Calling Home. So many of these adults are actually being abandoned by their parent in adulthood. Their parent isn’t making the effort to repair, investing in the relationship, or changing their behavior. Some are even refusing to admit the estrangement exists.

For many of these adults, sharing their feelings or pain leads to the parent ending the relationship. The parent simply walks away from the relationship. This is becoming strikingly more common among the population that I work with.

Why do parents not want a relationship with their children in adulthood?

Is avoidance easier than fixing the relationship?

Did they even want children to begin with?