This book did both those things for me. It didn't make me think of my mother as the villain in my story. She's too busy being the villain in her own. She's a woman who can't get out of her own way, emotionally. It helped me give up any hope that she'll understand anything and change, and so now I can fully focus on changing myself. Answer from gh954 on reddit.com
Amazon
amazon.com › Adult-Children-Emotionally-Immature-Parents › dp › 1626251703
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents: Gibson , Lindsay C.: 9781626251700: Amazon.com: Books
Here you will find sage advice and simple practices that will help you break free from old patterns, connect more deeply with yourself and others, and, ultimately, be the person you were always meant to be.” ―Ronald J. Frederick, PhD, psychologist and author of Living Like You Mean It “Lindsay C. Gibson, a very experienced psychotherapist, wrote Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents to provide guidance to adults for self-help in resolving anxiety, depression, and relationship difficulties that result from having emotionally immature parents.
New Harbinger Publications
newharbinger.com › home › book details
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents
December 23, 2019 - You may recall your childhood as a time when your emotional needs were not met, when your feelings were dismissed, or when you took on adult levels of responsibility in an effort to compensate for your parent’s behavior. These wounds can be healed, and you can move forward in your life. In this breakthrough book, clinical psychologist Lindsay Gibson exposes the destructive nature of parents who are emotionally immature or unavailable.
Author Lindsay C. Gibson
Price USD 18.95
What's your view on the book "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents"?
This book did both those things for me. It didn't make me think of my mother as the villain in my story. She's too busy being the villain in her own. She's a woman who can't get out of her own way, emotionally. It helped me give up any hope that she'll understand anything and change, and so now I can fully focus on changing myself. More on reddit.com
158
579
April 24, 2024For those reading or who have read "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents"...
I would read a chapter and then put it down for a couple weeks as my brain processed the information.
That book allowed me to actually, concretely visualize my parents as people, and gave words to the harm that they caused.
Reading that book helped me unlock parts of me I had kept hidden to survive and I have nothing but praise for it.
I am a better person to my friends and family because of it
More on reddit.com 56
111
June 25, 2024Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson is a must read for all of us who grew up with toxic parents.
Absolutely!!! This is one of my top recommendations! If you're interested in more resources I have... Plenty! Also I created a sub r/HealfromYourPast its new but i hope to create a space of healing and support! I'd love for you to share this there if you'd like. Also I welcome anyone to join my community! More on reddit.com
448
9636
December 2, 2020Which book by Lindsay Gibson and what are the differences - Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents OR Recovering from Emotionally Immature Parents.
If I were you I would start „adult children of […]“. It‘s a good starting point for your research, and when you‘re done with that you can have a look at the more practical tools. - which reminds me, I should do the latter, I started the book like a year ago… More on reddit.com
12
24
July 10, 2023Videos
01:24:01
Reparenting Yourself: How to Heal Emotional Immaturity | Dr. Lindsay ...
01:22:21
Recovering from Emotionally Immature Parents with Dr. Lindsay Gibson ...
13:04
The 4 Types of Emotionally Immature Parents (And How They Affect ...
44:23
How Egocentric Parents Impact Their Kids | The Interview - YouTube
47:35
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: Psychologist ...
Dr. Lindsay Gibson on Emotionally Immature Parents ...
Goodreads
goodreads.com › book › show › 23129659-adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson | Goodreads
In this wise and practical guide, a clinical psychologist who grew up with emotionally immature parents, provides powerful strategies to help you recognize and break free from the frustrating patterns of your relationship with your parents and discover the invaluable gifts they can offer you as well. I really appreciated Gibson's understanding tone and deep insight into the lives and minds of the adult children of emotionally immature parents.
Attachment Project
attachmentproject.com › home › psychology features center › emotionally immature parents: what they are and their impact › a guide for adult children of emotionally immature parents
A Guide for Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents - Attachment Project
April 2, 2024 - Children of emotionally immature parents often grew up feeling parentified and enmeshed with their caregivers’ emotions, so they continue to struggle with enacting and maintaining healthy boundaries as adults.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/emotionalneglect › what's your view on the book "adult children of emotionally immature parents"?
r/emotionalneglect on Reddit: What's your view on the book "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents"?
April 24, 2024 -
This is a question to those who have read "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents" by Lindsay C. Gibson.
I was introduced a lot of different concepts / conditions in the ream of psychology in recent months, which lead me to realise that I had grown up in an unhealthy environment, where my mother constantly made me responsible for her own emotional stability, only to push me away when she no longer needed me, or I was the one needing care.
I'm interested to read "Adult Children...", but I want to get input from those who have read it before committing to it (I've never read this kind of books before and don't necessarily want to go through an emotional roller coaster if it doesn't provide useful info moving forward lol)
Did it:
help you understand your parents? I'm not interested in seeing my mother as a villain. I want to learn how I can interact with her without destroying myself emotionally. I don't expect her to change at this point, but I can change the way I interact with her.
help you see flaws in yourself and show how you can improve? This is the main objective for me. I know my mother was also raised by a toxic mother, from who she distanced herself later in her life. I want to make sure I'm breaking this unhealthy cycle, so I can create a healthy relationship with my own kids when I become a parent myself. I'm terrified of becoming another dysfunctional parent and ending up hurting my own kids 😵💫
Thanks in advance for your input!
Oh, and if anyone has recommendations for other books with similar themes, please do let me know! 🥰
Top answer 1 of 54
302
This book did both those things for me. It didn't make me think of my mother as the villain in my story. She's too busy being the villain in her own. She's a woman who can't get out of her own way, emotionally. It helped me give up any hope that she'll understand anything and change, and so now I can fully focus on changing myself.
2 of 54
111
I’ve read this book because I saw it mentioned in a sub about a year ago. I knew something was wrong with my parents’ emotionally, especially my mother, but I didn’t quite know what. I was blown away by the discoveries I made while reading this book. The book discusses multiple types of EIP and I found my mother possess little bits of multiple types which is fairly common. I am the type of person who needs to understand the why in order to heal and this book helped with that. It gave some explanations as to why parents treat their children the way they do. As for not wanting to view your mother as a villain, well reading a book isn’t going to do that. If you feel any anger or animosity, it is just part of the grieving and healing process. A book isn’t going to make you feel a certain way towards someone, but realizing you’ve been mistreated might. This book might actually help you be more understanding - it shared that most abuse stems from abuse, so it helped me realize my mother was a victim too. I will also caution you to allow yourself to feel your emotions. I hindered myself by being irritated that I was still angry with my mother. Once I allowed myself to experience the emotion, I moved forward in my healing journey. As for improving yourself, this book isn’t going to do that directly. It’ll show you what adult immaturity is and you’ll likely avoid those behaviors which would be an improvement of sorts. To really improve yourself, you need to know what your issues are. Personally, I have codependency issues that stem from my being raised by EIP. This book started me on the path toward discovering that. The book “Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself” is what’s transforming my thinking and helping me heal. To figure out my own issues I did a lot of searching of my symptoms. I researched different types of parenting and the types of children/adults they result in. When I figured out my issues, I searched for books. Good luck!
Barnes & Noble
barnesandnoble.com › w › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents-lindsay-c-gibson-psyd › 1121368782
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson PsyD, Paperback | Barnes & Noble®
By freeing yourself from your parents’ emotional immaturity, you can recover your true nature, control how you react to them, and avoid disappointment. Finally, you’ll learn how to create positive, new relationships so you can build a better life. ... Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: How to Heal from Distant, Rejecting, or Self-Involved Parents
The Guardian
theguardian.com › lifeandstyle › 2026 › may › 18 › how-to-become-emotionally-mature-at-any-age-we-often-dont-realise-the-hurt-were-causing
How to become emotionally mature – at any age: ‘We often don’t realise the hurt we’re causing’ | Life and style | The Guardian
5 days ago - “However, you’ve probably learned emotionally immature attitudes and behaviours that may pop out at times. The difference is that if you have adequate emotional maturity, you’re going to notice it and it’s going to bother you.” · Perhaps the most important attitude parents could start with, says Gibson, is the idea that your child is “real inside”. It will probably be obvious to other parents, but from my own experience of often viewing my children as objects to be fed, clothed and ferried around, this was a sharp reminder.
Kayla Nelson Therapy
kaylanelsonlpc.com › blog › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents
Book Review of Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents — Kayla Nelson Therapy
December 21, 2025 - Overall, "Adult Children of Emotionally ... is a comprehensive and insightful book that can help readers understand the impact of growing up with emotionally immature parents and offer guidance on how to heal and recover from these experiences.”...
NYTimes
nytimes.com › 2024 › 12 › 10 › style › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents.html
‘Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents’ Surges in Popularity Online - The New York Times
December 10, 2024 - Gibson deems “emotionally immature” ... dynamic tends to lead children to grow into adults who are emotionally shut down, lack confidence and tend to isolate....
Reclaim Therapy
sarahherstichlcsw.com › blog › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents-and-the-four-types-of-parents-that-shaped-them
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: Which Parent Type Was Yours?
January 16, 2026 - Discover the four types of emotionally immature parents and how they create patterns of emotional loneliness. Learn the signs and how to heal from childhood emotional neglect.
Psychology Today
psychologytoday.com › us › blog › what-the-wild-things-are › 202504 › emotionally-immature-is-not-a-diagnosis
"Emotionally Immature" Is Not a Diagnosis | Psychology Today
April 18, 2025 - I’ve seen it multiple times: clients tell me they’re unwilling to invite their parent to therapy. “They’re emotionally immature. They won’t change.” · When I ask where that belief came from? The book. The most troubling part is that this belief often wasn’t theirs to begin with—it was given to them. Often, the adult child didn’t arrive at that conclusion on their own.
The Good Space
findyourgoodspace.com › blog › book-summary-adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents—Book Summary — The Good Space
June 6, 2025 - What happens when a child has emotionally immature parents? How do you recognize it and heal yourself? This episode is inspired by Lindsay C. Gibson’s book Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents*. Understanding what an emotionally immature parent looks like gives you the power to judge for yourself the level of relationship you can have with them.
Lindsaycgibson
lindsaycgibson.com › books.html
Books by psychologist author Lindsay Gibson: Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents, Who You Were Meant To Be, Finding Your True Self, Recovering from Emotionally Immature Parents, Self-Care for Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents, Dise - LINDSAY C. GIBSON, PSY.D.
In this how-to sequel to Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents, you will find powerful tools to help you protect your authenticity and forward momentum by seeing through the pervasive pressures of emotionally immature people (EIPs). You will learn how to spot their emotional takeovers, make sure your emotions and needs are taken into account, and break free from the guilt, shame, self-doubt, and fear they try to induce.
The Guardian
theguardian.com › wellness › 2024 › apr › 18 › emotionally-immature-parents
Do you have an ‘emotionally immature parent’? How a nine-year-old book found a new, younger audience | Well actually | The Guardian
April 22, 2024 - An adult child of emotionally immature parents might end up an internalizer, a people-pleaser who self-sacrifices their own needs to take care of others. Or they might become an externalizer, who is reactive, looks to others to self-soothe and ...
Reflectionsfromacrossthecouch
reflectionsfromacrossthecouch.com › blog › 4-types-of-emotionally-immature-parents
4 Types Of Emotionally Immature Parents
October 17, 2025 - Lindsay Gibson identifies four types of these parents and how deeply they affect their children. If this was your childhood, you may still feel angry, frustrated, or lonely as an adult. Many people put others first—partners, friends, family—while ignoring their own needs. Low self-esteem, self-doubt, and trouble trusting your instincts are common. After all, how can you trust yourself if your feelings were constantly dismissed? In contrast, emotionally mature parents see and validate their child’s feelings.
Address 247 Franklin Avenue Nutley, NJ, 07110 United States
Cova Psychology
covapsychology.com › home › adult children of emotionally immature parents
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents | Cova Psychology
December 10, 2025 - Yet there was a more subtle wound. When they tried to share feelings, they were met with discomfort, criticism or silence. This is often the experience of adult children of emotionally immature parents.
Mental Health Hope
mentalhealthhope.com › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents | Mental Health Hope
January 29, 2026 - In many cases, however, these types of parents tend to have difficulty regulating their emotions and overreact to problems. Others are so self-absorbed they ignore their children, depriving them of a warm, nurturing relationship.
Ryan Delaney
ryandelaney.co › book-notes › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents-summary
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson
Children of emotionally immature, selfish, or unavailable parents tend to experience anger, loneliness, and confusion in adulthood. Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents teaches you how to free yourself of your parents’ emotional ...
Myndlift
myndlift.com › home › blog › 3 key lessons from adult children of emotionally immature parents: a book summary
3 Key Lessons From Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: A Book Summary
January 15, 2025 - Emotional parents: They have difficulty tolerating stress and emotional arousal, so they often lose their emotional balance and behavioral control in situations mature adults can handle.
The Conversation
theconversation.com › adult-children-of-emotionally-immature-parents-a-cult-self-help-book-encourages-detachment-but-is-that-what-we-need-230403
Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: a cult self-help book encourages detachment – but is that what we need?
April 15, 2026 - I agree that self-involvement and distance can be damaging to the parent–child relationship. But I think – as adult children – we should consider broader factors and reflect on our own temperament, behaviour and experience, too, before jumping to blame our parents and their “emotional immaturity” for our problems.