 Hey Psych2Goers, welcome back. Do you sometimes wish you had a different family? Although every family has its problems in a healthy home, those problems can be overcome. But if there's a dysfunctional family dynamic, every new day brings a different set of challenges. To help you recognize the signs of a dysfunctional family dynamic, here are some of the most common ones. Number one, fear. Have you ever tried to hide something from your parents? Maybe a bad grade or a broken vase? Discipline is important and sometimes parents may raise their voices. Sometimes when kids make mistakes, some consequences are needed. If a child breaks a vase, they'd have to clean the mess. If they get a bad grade, they'd have to spend extra time studying. These are not examples of extremely bad things, but some parents act like every little mistake is terrible. Like screaming at their children, taking away their things, forbidding them from seeing their friends or even physically punishing them. When this happens, children learn to fear their parents, even for mundane things. So they feel like they need to do everything perfectly. Sometimes the fear is so great, they may even run away from home because of fear of their parents' reaction. Number two, codependency. A codependent parent has an unhealthy preoccupation with their children that makes them excessively control their children's lives. They may feel like their happiness and stability depends on their children or that their kids are responsible for their health and overall well-being. They may take care of their children even with things they should let their kids do in order to grow and learn, like cleaning their rooms even if they're teenagers. They consider their children their only friends and may rarely hang out with other adults. They may also use guilt-tripping and gaslighting to manipulate their kids into doing what they want them to do. This type of behavior can negatively impact their kids' personality and identity since children see their parents as role models and learn about the world based on the behavior their parents exhibit. So they become dependent on their parents too, making the relationship unhealthy. Number three, neglect. Neglect is another common sign that a family dynamic is not the healthiest. It's a type of abuse. Parents from dysfunctional families often fail to take care of their children as they should, such as washing their clothes or making sure their hair is clean and combed. They don't help their kids with homework and often don't even know if they go to school regularly. Sometimes they may not even notice if their kids have eaten. The neglect can negatively impact their children's mental health and physical health, which is dangerous for their development. Number four, silence. In dysfunctional families, communication doesn't happen very often. Each family member might be closed off in their rooms, doing their own thing and don't even open up to each other or ask for advice. They don't tell each other about their day or something they're excited about. Silent treatments can also happen as a way to handle conflict and it can also be used as a punishment. This can be especially harmful if parents use the silent treatment as a form of discipline for their children. If someone tries to break that silence with honesty and openness, other members could react by humiliating them for stating their feelings, though the silence continues. And number five, isolation. Finally, dysfunctional families tend to keep to each other and avoid letting anyone, including other family members, friends or neighbors, into their lives. They keep their distance so that the secret of an unhealthy family dynamics stays hidden. Parents may tell their children that other people are bad and that they should avoid them or make up lies about why nobody ever visits. This makes it hard to receive any help since their problems are not visible to others. Is your family showing some of these signs? If so, it's important that you take care of yourself and seek help from a therapist to help you deal with everyday life and keep in mind, you won't have to deal with that environment forever. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Remember to like and share this video with friends who may benefit. As always, the references are shown in the description below. Until next time friends, take care.