{"id":114647,"date":"2019-08-13T11:00:13","date_gmt":"2019-08-13T10:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?p=114647"},"modified":"2023-03-07T20:24:56","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07T20:24:56","slug":"family-estrangement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/family-estrangement.htm","title":{"rendered":"Family Estrangement in a Modern World &#8211; Is It Always a Bad Thing?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_114650\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/2537527296_ee07dca27d.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-114650\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-114650\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/2537527296_ee07dca27d-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"family estrangement\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/2537527296_ee07dca27d-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/2537527296_ee07dca27d.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-114650\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">By: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/migulski\/2537527296\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\" \">Bogdan Migulski<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\">by Andrea M. Darcy<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Don\u2019t talk to your<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/why-do-my-parents-hate-me.htm\"> parents<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/mental-health-issues-in-childhood.htm\">siblings<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/bad-parents-are-you-one.htm\">children<\/a>? And worried about the long-term affects of family estrangement? <\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Is it really family estrangement? <\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Family estrangement can happen suddenly, with one family member deciding to cut out others, or simply disappearing. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333333;\"><b>But if you are talking less and less, without any<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/connecting-with-people.htm\">real connection<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/being-honest-does-it-matter.htm\">honesty<\/a> when you talk? It could be an estrangement. <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #993366;\"><span class=\"s1\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1177\/0093650217715542\">Research shows<\/a><\/span> it is more common that family estrangement happens slowly, with increasingly less communication over time. <\/span><span class=\"s1\">Or it can happen in cycles, with long periods of no contact followed by attempts at reconciliation.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>Is it normal to be estranged from family?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Modern marketing makes millions with adverts of happy families, teaching us that if you have one, you are a success.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong>But that ideal family is unrealistic, and family estrangement is actually increasingly common.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"color: #333399;\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.standalone.org.uk\/\">Stand Alone<\/a>, a UK charity helping those who feel overwhelmed to not have family support, suggests that<strong> as many one in five families<\/strong> in the UK suffer estrangement.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>Don&#8217;t talk to your parents?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>It&#8217;s actually the most common form of family estrangement. <\/strong>A child decides to no longer have contact with parents once they become an adult themselves. And it\u2019s not just the clich\u00e9 of the absent father. <\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><span style=\"color: #333399;\">An <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4507819\/#R59\"><strong>American research overview<\/strong><\/a> looking at over two thousand <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/the-mother-wound-under-mothered.htm\">mother child relationships<\/a> found that over 10% had an estrangement with one or more of their children.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Family estrangement causes<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_114656\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/41936279832_815d22e917.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-114656\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-114656\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/41936279832_815d22e917-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"family estrangement\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/41936279832_815d22e917-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/41936279832_815d22e917.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-114656\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">By: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/gammaman\/41936279832\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\" \">Eli Christman<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p>In movies and films family ruptures come from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/relationship-conflict-still-fighting.htm\">big fight<\/a> or clear incident. But in real life it&#8217;s rarely so obvious.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Family system theory in psychology suggests that we \u2018cut off\u2019 from others in order to<\/strong> create the space to process overwhelming emotions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>And overwhelming emotions build up over time. They result from <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/keeping-secrets-from-family.htm\">secrets<\/a> and lies around things like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-childhood-trauma.htm\">trauma<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/i-think-i-was-abused-as-a-child.htm\"> abuse<\/a>, violence, and emotional neglect. And from years of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/communication-problems.htm\">poor communication<\/a> and unmet needs.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"color: #993366;\">But the most common family estrangement cause has actually been found to be when family members simply no longer have what psychologists call &#8216;value similarity&#8217;. They no longer share personal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/personal-values-know-yours.htm\">values<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/examples-of-core-beliefs.htm\">core beliefs<\/a>. <\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This can be a question of<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/spirituality-and-mental-health.htm\"> religion<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-perspective.htm\">different perspectives<\/a>, or new<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/life-changing-events.htm\"> life choices<\/a>. Or it can be something like one family member<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-antisocial-personality-disorder.htm\"> violating social norms<\/a> in a way other members simply can&#8217;t accept.<\/p>\n<h2>How modern life causes families to fall apart<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Society is changing in ways that support the individual over a unit. And this could be adding to <\/strong>family estrangement. Things like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/university-and-depression-survival-guide-students.htm\">higher education<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/10-ways-help-debt-problems.htm\">financial security<\/a>, and strong social systems might mean we need family less than before.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/41604202?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents\">research paper from the University of Zurich<\/a> also points out that not only are<strong> young people are more geographically mobile, and drifting away from parents? But how<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/helicopter-parenting.htm\"> parents are more interested in freedom<\/a> from their children.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">When personality disorders run in families<\/span><\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_114657\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/26378355081_e9404568b6.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-114657\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-114657\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/26378355081_e9404568b6-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"family estrangement\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/26378355081_e9404568b6-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/26378355081_e9404568b6.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-114657\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">By: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/freetheimage\/26378355081\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer\" \">Mark Freeth<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Personality disorders can also be at play. <\/strong>If someone has a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/personality-disorder-a-help-guide.htm\">personality disorder<\/a> they see themselves, others, and the world in a very different way.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Schizoid personality disorder <\/strong>leads to someone simply not being interested in relationships.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>Other personality disorders lead to destructive behaviours <\/strong>that drive other away.\u00a0The family member can physically hurt or endanger others (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/what-is-antisocial-personality-disorder.htm\">antisocial personality disorder<\/a>), or mentally and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/emotionally-abusive-relationships.htm\">emotionally abuse them<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/narcissistic-personality-disorder.htm\">narcissistic personality disorder<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/compassion-for-borderline-personality-disorder.htm\">borderline personality disorder<\/a>).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Is a family estrangement always a bad thing?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Traditionally, the belief has been that alienation from family should not be long-term, as it has negative effects.<\/strong> Family systems theory, for example, believes that an emotional cut-off with family just gets &#8216;passed on&#8217; to our other relationships, such as causing issues in your marriage.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong>But if a member of your family has a personality disorder, or is putting your wellbeing at risk? <\/strong>\u00a0Then an estrangement can be a matter of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/self-care-and-depression.htm\">self-care<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"color: #333399;\">\u00a0If you feel more able to cope on a daily basis without family contact, then it might be that at this time in your life estrangement is actually appropriate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">And new research is challenging if we have to have good relationships with our family to be happy and healthy.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\"> Family researcher Dr. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\">Lucy Blake concludes in her 2017 <a href=\"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1111\/jftr.12216\">review on estrangement literature,<\/a>\u00a0that we need to &#8220;move<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><span style=\"color: #333333;\"> beyond our<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/making-assumptions.htm\"> assumptions<\/a> and understand family relationships as they are, rather than how they could or should be.&#8221;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Estrangement can also have a positive side. In<a href=\"https:\/\/www.standalone.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/HiddenVoices.FinalReport.pdf\"> a survey<\/a> put out by both the<\/strong> University of Cambridge and the Stand Alone charity, 80%\u00a0 of those who responded reported &#8220;greater feelings of freedom and independence&#8221;.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Family estrangement and depression<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Of course there is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/how-to-overcome-loneliness.htm\">loneliness<\/a> and lack of support to consider.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_114675\" style=\"width: 410px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-114675\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-114675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"family estrangement\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash-400x266.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash-180x120.jpg 180w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash.jpg 709w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-114675\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">photo by Jonathan Sharp<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>If you relied on your family for your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/a-sense-of-self-who-am-i.htm\">sense of self<\/a>, or never <\/strong>got the love and support from your family you needed as a child? Nor learned how to find that in adult relationships?<\/p>\n<p><em>A family estrangement can leave you with a secret feeling that you are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/7-surprising-reasons-feeling-lonely.htm\">utterly alone in the world<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/why-do-i-feel-so-unloveable.htm\">defective in some way<\/a>. This can lead to overwhelming<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/shame-definition.htm\"> shame<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/negative-thoughts.htm\"> low self-esteem<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/types-of-depression.htm\">depression<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Repairing family estrangement <\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\">If you actually are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/depression-help-guide.htm\">depressed<\/a> about estrangement, does this mean <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"s1\">you have to repair family estrangement to feel better?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"color: #333399;\">\u00a0If you&#8217;ve not dealt with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/emotionally-repressed-signs.htm\">repressed emotions<\/a> and unresolved issues that led to the estrangement, an attempt to reconcile can simply re-trigger everything.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>The best way to approach repairing family estrangement is to see it as an inside job first. <\/strong>The more we can process upset and find a solid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/low-self-worth.htm\">sense of self-worth<\/a> that isn&#8217;t reliant on family acceptance? The more we feel better regardless if a reconciliation does or doesn&#8217;t take place. And the more we can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/high-expectations.htm\">lower our expectations<\/a> of the other person, so that if it one does, it&#8217;s more likely to last.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333399;\">[Ready to attempt reconciliation? <a href=\"https:\/\/harleytherapy.us7.list-manage.com\/subscribe?u=1eae2866aa08c42d41969f67c&amp;id=d90c6313a7\" rel=\"nofollow\">Sign up to our blog now<\/a> to know when we publish the next article in this series, &#8220;How to Repair Family Estrangement&#8217;.]\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #993366;\">Need support to work through feelings of loneliness and distress due to family estrangement? We connect you to<span style=\"color: #666699;\"><a style=\"color: #666699;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/therapists.htm\"> top London talk therapists<\/a><\/span>. Or find a <a href=\"https:\/\/harleytherapy.com\/?utm_source=Harley%20Therapy%20Blog&amp;utm_content=Post%20End\"><span style=\"color: #666699;\">UK-wide registered therapist<\/span><\/a> or <span style=\"color: #666699;\"><a style=\"color: #666699;\" href=\"https:\/\/harleytherapy.com\/therapists?location_type=skype&amp;utm_source=Harley%20Therapy%20Blog&amp;utm_content=Post%20End\">online counsellor<\/a> <\/span>on our booking site.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>Want to share your story or advice about family estrangement with other readers? Use the comment box below.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333399;\"><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-114425 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-395x400.png\" alt=\"Andrea M. Darcy\" width=\"102\" height=\"103\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-395x400.png 395w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-768x778.png 768w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-500x506.png 500w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-200x200.png 200w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37-50x50.png 50w, https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/wp-content\/uploads\/Screenshot-2019-02-23-at-18.17.37.png 792w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 102px) 100vw, 102px\" \/>Andrea M. Darcy<\/strong> is the editor and lead writer of this site and a well established <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amdarcy.com\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">psychology writer<\/a>. After years of trying to repair her estranged family, she realised that sometimes acceptance is key. You can also find her on Instagram @am_darcy<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Andrea M. Darcy Don\u2019t talk to your parents, siblings, or children? And worried about the long-term affects of family estrangement? Is it really family estrangement? Family estrangement can happen suddenly, with one family member deciding to cut out others, or simply disappearing. But if you are talking less and less, without any real connection [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":114675,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"yes","_lmt_disable":"no","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[247,325],"class_list":["post-114647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-relationships","tag-conflict","tag-family","has_thumb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Family Estrangement in a Modern World - Is It Always a Bad Thing? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is family estrangement getting you down? Worried about the long-term consequences of not talking to family? 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Darcy\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/family-estrangement.htm\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/family-estrangement.htm\",\"name\":\"Family Estrangement in a Modern World - Is It Always a Bad Thing? - Harley Therapy\u2122 Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/family-estrangement.htm#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/family-estrangement.htm#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\\\/counselling\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/jonathan-sharp-E0rsKheWqmk-unsplash.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-08-13T10:00:13+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-07T20:24:56+00:00\",\"description\":\"Is family estrangement getting you down? 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Darcy","author_link":"#"},"uagb_comment_info":5,"uagb_excerpt":"by Andrea M. Darcy Don\u2019t talk to your parents, siblings, or children? And worried about the long-term affects of family estrangement? Is it really family estrangement? Family estrangement can happen suddenly, with one family member deciding to cut out others, or simply disappearing. 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