The Sense of Emotional Neglect
Emptiness The traumas individuals experience during childhood can leave profound marks on their lives. Neglect and abuse during childhood can lead to psychological problems in adolescence and adulthood. According to research, 35-57% of individuals may exhibit psychological symptoms in adulthood based on the neglect and abuse they experienced in childhood (Goodman, Rosenberg, Mueser, & Drake, 1997; Mueser, Bond, Drake, & Resnick, 1998; Mueser et al., 2004).
Childhood traumas are divided into two groups: abuse and neglect. These two subtypes are further classified into physical abuse, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse, as well as physical neglect and emotional neglect. According to a study involving individuals diagnosed with psychological disorders, emotional neglect and physical neglect were reported as the most common types of maltreatment (Xie et al., 2018). This blog post aims to discuss emotional neglect and the resulting feeling of emptiness.
Emotional neglect is defined as the failure of caregivers to meet the emotional needs of a child. Examples of emotional needs include caregivers not showing affection to the child, the child witnessing domestic violence, permissive attitudes towards the child’s problematic behaviors, and the absence of emotional care (Stoltenborg, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & Ijzendoorn, 2013).
According to Webb and Musello (2020), adults who have experienced emotional neglect often struggle with a feeling of emptiness, and this feeling can become chronic. Individuals experiencing the sense of emptiness may have multiple emotions, finding it challenging to express and understand their feelings. This feeling of emptiness may emerge as a way for individuals to express the overwhelming nature of having too many emotions. When the feeling of emptiness arises, individuals may struggle to show self-compassion and understand their own needs.
Unmet emotional needs during childhood can manifest in unhealthy attachment patterns in adult relationships. According to Sadock and Sadock (2008), individuals who have experienced emotional neglect may approach unfamiliar people with love but show emotionally detached behavior towards long-known individuals in social contexts. This inability to establish secure attachments in relationships can lead to difficulties in forming healthy relationship dynamics. Individuals experiencing a sense of worthlessness and loneliness in their relationships are commonly observed (Webb & Musello, 2020). In clinical settings, individuals often describe this feeling as “emptiness” when they have difficulty expressing their emotions. When individuals are faced with this emptiness and psychological symptoms, seeking support from professionals through psychotherapy can be beneficial.
Book Recommendations:
- “Running on Empty: Overcome Your Childhood Emotional Neglect” by Jonice Webb
- “Running on Empty No More: Transform Your Relationships with Your Partner, Your Parents and Your Children” by Jonice Webb References:
- Goodman LA, Rosenberg SD, Mueser KT, Drake RE. (1997). Physical and sexual assault history in women with serious mental illness: prevalence, correlates, treatment, and future research directions, Schizophrenia Bulletin, doi:10.1093/schbul/23.4.685.
- Mueser, KT, Bond GR, Drake RE, Resnick SG. (1998). Models of community care for severe mental illness: A review of research on case management, Schizophrenia Bulletin, doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.schbul.a033314
- Mueser KT, Clark RE, Haines M, Drake RE, McHugo GJ, Bond GR, … Swain K. (2004). The Hartford study of supported employment for persons with severe mental illness, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, doi: 10.1037/0022-006X.72.3.479.
- Sadock BJ, Sadock VA. (2008). Problems Related to Abuse and Neglect. In: R. Cancro (ed). Kaplan & Sadock‘s Concise Textbook of Clinical Psychiatry, Baltimore, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 414-420.
- Stoltenborg M, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, van Ijzendoorn MH, Alink LRA. (2013). Cultural-geographical differences in the occurrence of child physical abuse? A meta-analysis of global prevalence, International Journal of Psychology, doi:10.1080/00207594.2012.697165.
- Webb, J. ve Musello, C. (2020). Çocuklukta ihmalin izi: boşluk hissi (12. bs.). (Arıkan, G., Çev.) İstanbul: Sola Unitas.
- Xie P, Wu K, Zheng Y, Guo Y, Yang Y, He J, … Peng H. (2018). Prevalence of childhood trauma and correlations between childhood trauma, suicidal ideation, and social support in patients with depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia in southern China, Journal of Affective Disorders, doi:10.1016/j.jad.2017.11.011
Elif ÇALIŞKAN
Clinical Psychologist
University:
Hacettepe University, Faculty of Letters, Psychology (High Honor Student), 2016
Hacettepe University, Faculty of Letters, Sociology (Minor), 2016
Specialization:
Ankara University, Institute of Health Sciences, Interdisciplinary Family Counseling (High Honor Student), 2021
Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Institute of Social Sciences, Clinical Psychology (High Honor Student), 2021
Uzman Bilgisi
Yazıları
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Consciousness: Consciousness is the awareness of oneself, of one’s experiences, of his environment, of other people, and of the universe in which he lives as a whole. So, as ‘conscious’ individuals, are we really aware of ourselves, our environment and the universe we live in? If our sun were the size of the dot at …
Panic Attack
A panic attack is an unexpected, spontaneous condition accompanied by palpitations, sweating, tremors, feeling short of breath, chest pain or tightness, dizziness, lightheadedness, numbness, tingling, and an intense fear of death, fainting, or going crazy. . People with panic attacks apply to the emergency services of hospitals with complaints such as “I am having a …
Approach to a Child with Autism
Autism is a developmental disorder that presents with findings such as limitation in social interaction, significant delay in communication level, limitation in interests and repetitive behaviors in children. This disorder usually begins to show signs before the 36th month, and it is 4 times more common in boys than girls. While the incidence of the …
An Unhappy Child Who Never Grows Up: Peter Sellers
From the moment we enter the movie theater, we step into a new world in the magical atmosphere of 7th art. At the door of the hall, the fights of daily life are left behind and we find ourselves in completely different lives from the moment the movie starts. We can be rich, poor, full …
What is Depression? What are the symptoms? How is the treatment?
The term ‘depression’ is one of the most used medical terms in daily life, for this reason; It has been the subject of many misunderstandings and misconceptions. It is highly probable that almost everyone will hear the phrase ‘I am depressed these days’ from their mouths at some point in their lives. So, is every …
Depression May Not Come With Drums
Depression’s low mood, reluctance, not enjoying life, introversion, crying, irritability can often be easily noticed and may lead you to consult a psychiatrist with the thought of “Am I getting depressed?” However, depressive illnesses may not always begin to manifest itself by playing the drums and horns. That is to say, depression is actually a …
The Hate Diary of a Psychiatrist
The sickly color of the city turned pale and reduced the will to live in people. In fact, outsiders say that the gloomy weather suits this city very well. For those who live here, it doesn’t really matter. They spend the day in the evening without complaining about each other’s same lives every day. My …
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Psychotherapy; It is the general name of the techniques that aim to solve the cognitive, emotional and behavioral problems of individuals through verbal interviews with a trained professional and to protect and improve the mental health of individuals. Throughout the history of psychiatry, different types of psychotherapy have been developed in various periods, shaped according …
The Psychology of Attachment “I Can’t Live Without You”
I can’t live without him, we complement each other, I’m incomplete without him, I can’t imagine a world without him… These expressions, which we all hear or say personally in our daily life, may not be so innocent after all. Ranging from ‘I’m nothing without you’ to ‘it’s mine or the black soil’, these sentences …
Role Distribution in Life: Unloved
There are children who are not accepted, loved, and rejected by their mothers. They climb to their mothers, to love me, take care of me, take care of me. The more she climbs, the more the mother pushes, the more the mother pushes, the more the child clings to the mother. These kids cry for …
Attitudes of Parents in University Exams
University exams have increasingly become the nightmare of both young people and parents in our country. Many people who put all their hopes into these exams go into a serious stress environment before and after the exam. They are right. So it’s not an unwarranted stress. Children flock to psychiatrists at exam time. They have …
Mental Problems Disrupt Our Physical Health
Studies by scientists say that mental problems and related problems can lead to serious diseases in the body after a while. Examining the timing and course of certain diseases shows how connected we are to the people in our lives and how much we are affected by these relationships. The frictions, turmoil and disappointments experienced …
So Was It Time to Die?
I always thought of our country as one big family. Not every country is a family, but our country has always been a big family since the establishment of the Republic of Turkey. Although the population of this family increased very rapidly, new brides and grooms entered the family, some of them were our own …
People of a Huge Country Looking for Himself
I’ve been a curious person for as long as I can remember. I was like that in my childhood. I will never forget the day I started school. My mother had tied white ribbons to my braided hair hanging from both sides. It was as if I was knocking on the door of the world …
Loving Yourself
It is actually very difficult for a person to love and like himself because the beast inside us is insatiable. If we do three, he’ll want five more. Such is the nature of man, but if it were not so, we would all sit hand in hand. Nature probably knows these things better than any …
Betrayal
Betrayal is perhaps one of the greatest pains that human beings can experience in the world. Even poets, in poems and songs, are angry if you compare separation and betrayal with death, and they say that betrayal always hurts a person even more than death. Because in betrayal, there are infuriating and hurtful meanings such …
Always the Same Role
Our role in life begins the moment we are born. This first role, given to us by our mothers, fathers or very close relatives, sticks to us so much that we never leave that role as long as we live, even if the movies change or the scenarios are written differently. Then we call it …
Marriage, Middle Age, Lie
Usually all men are afraid before marriage. They flee as the prey flees the predator. They are afraid of being caught by the hunter. For a while, they see girls as husband hunters. They do not have such fears at a young age, long before the age of marriage. Then there is only love for …
Reflections of the Economic Crisis on the Human Spirit
The people of our country have been living with crises for years. I mean, it never even came out. Economic crises that occur every 8-10 years, natural disasters, terrorism, emerging corruption and wars surrounding our country… All these strengthen our people against all kinds of crises and increase their ability to stand under all conditions, …
A Mobbing Tragedy
The meaning of mobbing can be defined as psychological violence, pressure or harassment. Especially in places where there is a hierarchical structure, it is the powerful oppressing the underdogs or harassing them in various ways. This harassment can sometimes be done by using social and psychological pressure methods, and sometimes it can be in the …
Trauma-Associated Disorders
Trauma, in its most general definition, is a state of discomfort resulting from an unusual experience that has a lasting effect on the individual’s mental state and personality. It is possible to examine traumas in 2 types as short-term and permanent traumas. While short-term traumas occur as a result of sudden and non-continuous events such …
Drug Uses in Psychiatry
We can say that there is an extreme tendency towards medical drugs in our society. Most of the time, it is common to use medication based on the symptoms that occur in the body, even if it is not prescribed by a doctor. In cases such as a small cough, fever or headache, we resort …
Our Most “Popular” Schemes
The emotional needs of individuals that are not met, especially in childhood, play a role in the formation of certain schemas. Emotional deprivation: It results from the emotional neglect of a child’s primary caregiver, most often the mother. The idea that “I will never be loved enough” prevails. These people, knowingly or unknowingly, put emotional …
The Importance of Peer Relationships in Children
In early childhood, babies begin to show a marked interest in all other children. However, since the social skills necessary to play with other children are not yet fully developed, the first types of play are the ones they play alone. After a while, they start to play side-by-side games with their peers around the …
Divorce: A Psychological Perspective
One of the most common issues that parents want to receive counseling or therapy services for their children is the divorce process. Divorce, which is an undesirable situation in parental relations, can lead to different effects for each family structure. Depending on the attitudes and behaviors of the parents, it can be considered normal, on …
Deception And Abandonment
In my first years of working as a cheating and abandonment psychiatrist, that is, 25-30 years ago (in fact, I don’t like talking about such huge numbers when talking about past years, but unfortunately this is the truth) I only listened to women who were cheated on. These were women stabbed in the chest, that’s …
Our Current Psychology Publications
Is There Such a Thing as Coronaphobia, or Not!
“What if I’ve contracted the virus?” “What if I’m asymptomatic and pass it on to someone?” …
What is Stress? Symptoms and Treatment Methods of Stress
Stress, the natural reaction of the body during any moment of danger that requires adaptation or response, can be triggered …
Empathy: The Art of Understanding Others and Establishing Empathic Connection
The term “empathy” is briefly mentioned as “duygudaşlık” on the Turkish Language Association’s …
The Sense of Emotional Neglect
Emptiness The traumas individuals experience during childhood can leave profound marks on their lives. Neglect and abuse …
Healthy Communication in Marriage
Effective Ways to Solve Problems in Marriage – How Should Healthy Arguments Be? Marriage is the union of two individuals …
Bedwetting (Enuresis)
The term enuresis comes from the Greek word “enourein,” which means “to urinate.” Today, enuresis …
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) in Children
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in children is characterized by the constant and often prolonged repetition of certain …
Fear, Anxiety, and Children
Fear, Anxiety, and Children Many children experience fear and anxiety as a normal part of their development. They exhibit …
Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Neurodevelopmental disorders encompass a group of differences and disorders that affect the development of the nervous system, …
