What happens when your older sibling becomes your parent?

In Episode 1 of The Group Sessions Podcast, we uncover the hidden cost of growing up too fast—and the lifelong trauma of being forced to cosplay adulthood in dysfunctional homes. This conversation dives deep into the psychology of emotional parentification, exploring how it warps childhood development and traps us in caregiving roles that follow us into adulthood—leaving us exhausted, underloved, and unheard.

We also unpack how parentification increases vulnerability to abuse—especially when children are conditioned to identify as “equals” to adults and taught to prioritize others’ needs above their own safety.

This is a powerful, triggering, and healing reflection on silence, survival, and the families we’re still learning to heal from.

—

Robert Saint Michael, NLP

Certified Mental Health Life Coach

Master NLP Practitioner

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Referenced in this episode:

– National Child Traumatic Stress Network: Impacts of emotional neglect and family role reversal

– Hooper, L.M. (2007). The Psychological Impact of Parentification in Childhood

– U.S. Department of Justice: Statistics on child sexual abuse and familial offenders

– Afifi, T.D. et al. (2016). Childhood caregiving and adult mental health outcomes