The Third Child in the Marriage: Breaking the Parent-Child Dynamic

The Parent-Child dynamic in a marriage is often a silent saboteur of intimacy. When one partner consistently carries the "mental load" and adopts a managerial, Parental ego state to handle anxiety, it unconsciously invites the other partner to retreat into a resistant or passive Child ego state. This entanglement creates a "leaky" relationship vessel where...

The Impact of Parental Criticism on a Child’s Self-Esteem: A Psychoanalytic Perspective

The words we use with our children have a profound and often underestimated impact. A subtle, yet powerful observation is this: “When we criticise our children, we don’t risk them stopping loving us; we risk them stopping loving themselves.” This phrase encapsulates a crucial element of emotional development. […]