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| Cklara Moradian |
Azad Moradian |
The theme of attachment is inseparable from both psychological theory
and practice and throughout my years of experience in the field of
psychology, attachment and the array of emotions or processes that
comes along with it has been intertwined with my work. The word
attachment itself can be looked at as a connection or a bond between
two or more people who each contribute to the relationship and the
strength of the attachment is dependent on the level of contribution
Without attachment, the meaning of such intense human experiences such
as love, friendship, hate, grief, loss would all be lost. What
physiological or neurological procedure takes place within an
individual that compels him/her towards attachment to someone is still
vague to us but what is clear is that even in the clinical field,
pathology is at times the direct result of false or unhealthy
attachments or even lack thereof. Disorders such as ADHD, Autism,
Eating Disorders, Addiction, sexual disorders and emotional
irregularity, inability to cope with anger or hostility all seem to be
somehow related to attachment to someone or something at a very
sensitive developmental phase in our lives.
In Focus Family Therapy, which I am using as a tool to work with my
client, the theory is focused on relationships within a family, which
again would be meaningless without attachment. Attachment Narrative
theory, as the name suggests, is predominantly focused on the role
attachment plays within Marriage Family Therapy. The therapeutic
relationship itself, the transference or counter transference between
patient and therapist is again an agent of attachment. In most
psychological theories within Marriage Family Therapy, an individual's
maturity level is often assessed based on how well he/she has been able
to form a mutual bond with another person and respect reciprocity
within a relationship.
The developmental phases in which early attachments with caregivers are
formed, as well as the way those attachments are formed are often the
framework for the mental health of an individual in adulthood. During
those early infancy attachment leads the way for trust vs. mistrust,
for the possibility of an adult who perceives the world as a place
where needs are met and safety is ensured. The lack of adequate
attachment on the other hand can be detrimental to the schema and
cognition of an individual's perceptions. The themes of abandonment,
negligence, and a well-established self-esteem are all developed during
those early years of attachment.
John Bowlby was the pioneer of the attachment theory and began studying
the role of attachment while working with animals, which led to the
laboratory experiments by Mary Ainsworth to prove the theory through
the Strange Situation scenario.
Mothers who have symptoms of Aspergers or either Autism, who themselves
have attachment relevant issues, are also at risk of being unable to
transfer an adequate sense of safety and security to infants and form
clear attachments with them.
In my practice, working with couples or families, I have often seen
that when a couple's sense of attachment/bond is lost they often
regress to childhood behaviors of tantrums or cries, in forms of
becoming aggressive or demanding. How this regression is understood is
that an adult that feels loss of love from a partner, or betrayal or
loneliness, when an adult feels that they have been abandoned or their
emotional/physical needs are not met. If attachment in early childhood
was not adequately developed, they will often regress to a place of
hostility and aggression due to the emotional immaturity
Mothers, who suffer from depression after pregnancy, or have a child
due to unplanned pregnancy, are culturally pressured to have sons
rather than daughters, often suffer from an inability to transfer an
adequate sense of attachment to their infants, which could result in
emotional irregularity in the child in the future.
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