Attachment Disorders

After working in the field of mental health and addictions for almost 20 years, I learned that if we do not heal the wounded inner child, we cannot create and sustain a happy and fulfilling adulthood. One of the most common conditions is attachment disorder. Children develop various types of attachment disorder due to a lack of consistent, responsive and nurturing caregiving, often stemming from abuse, neglect, frequent changes in caregivers or institutional settings such as orphanages, which disrupts the formation of secure emotional bonds. 

I remember when we brought our little Hani home from an orphanage in India. He needed constant holding, affection, love. He would fall asleep only while resting on my chest each night. Hani struggled with an Anxious Attachment Disorder as he craved closeness and intimacy, but worried about abandonment and rejection. Children may become overly dependent on their partners and struggle with trust as an adult. 

Avoidant Attachment Disorder is another type. A child would be uncomfortable with intimacy and physical touch, and prefer independence and being alone. They may push away parents, and then partners in adulthood, and struggle with emotional vulnerability. 

The most common type of attachment is individuals with a Secure Attachment Style. The child would feel comfortable with intimacy and autonomy, trusting their parents and then partners and themselves in adulthood. They have a sense of safety and can form strong, healthy relationships as they grow.

There are various treatment options for those who have struggled with attachment disorder. Typically, it involves a multifaceted approach, including therapy like play and family therapy, counselling, parenting skills classes, and in some cases, medication to address co-occurring conditions which can be short-term.

Despite the negative nurture and nature that shaped us as children, there are numerous therapies that can treat those old wounds and heal the inner child so that we can be happy and foster mental wellness as an adult. 

 

Becky Morrison is a Nurse Practitioner based out of Calgary who has specialized in mental health for over a decade. She is finally, after years of infertility, a mother of two busy little boys, and doting fur mom of her gentle giant, Stella. She is, and always will be, a strong advocate for mental wellness at all ages.