Emotional parentification is when a child is expected by the parents to take on the emotional needs of a parent or a caregiver which can include listening to an adult's problems, being the source of reassurance and comfort or providing emotional support.
You can get PTSD from parentification as well as flashbacks, anxiety and depression and is a significant burden on a child that can lead to long term mental health issues.
Parentification also known as parent–child role reversal is the process of role reversal in which a child or adolescent is obliged to support the family system in ways that are developmentally inappropriate and overly burdensome.
Parentification can also impact the child's emotional and psychological well-being.
And the parentification can also contribute to anxiety and depressive symptoms in children as well as higher levels of emotional distress, a lower sense of control, and an increased likelihood of risky behaviors.
The parentification occurs when a child takes on developmentally inappropriate levels of responsibility for their family's emotional, physical, and/or mental well-being.
This type of reverse parenting results in them becoming caregivers before they're physically, mentally, or emotionally ready for such responsibility.
The parentification most often occurs when a child is expected to take on the role of a parent without the necessary support or resources to do so effectively.
This type of trauma can lead to significant psychological distress and can be considered a form of emotional abuse.
The signs that a child was parntified include.
Acting as the mediator between parents.
Being expected to provide for their family financially.
Feeling responsible for their parent's well-being.
Getting drawn into their parent's conflicts.
Narcissistic parentification involves emotional and instrumental parentification and more.
A child is given a role by the parent (golden child, invisible child, parentified child, scapegoat).
The golden child is treated like they are the sun, in the parents' eyes they are perfect.
Some examples of parentification include.
Caring for younger siblings: When a child is parentified and has a younger sibling, they often assume a parental role in their sibling's life.
The type of responsibility they take on for their younger sibling will depend on the child's age.