 Six types of unhealthy father-son relationships. In romantic comedy drama film Garden State, main character Andrew returns to his hometown to attend his mother's funeral. Andrew's father, a psychiatrist, blamed Andrew for his mother's death and put him on medications to try and control his emotions. Believing it was Andrew's anger that triggered his mother's accident. People often say sons grow up to be as great as their fathers. But what about those of us who grew up without a dad or had a tough upbringing from them? We want to inform the public just how important it is to understand how toxic family dynamics can affect the individual state of being. Here are six types of unhealthy father-son relationships. 1. The Absent Father A special shout out goes to Coffee Drop, who mentioned the absent father in our recent video, six types of unhealthy father-daughter relationships. If you haven't already, please check it out after this. The absent father was never around when you needed him. CEO and co-founder of Psych2Go, Tai Kwong, can strongly relate to this. His father left Tai in his family when he was little. Tai's father is a businessman who is constantly sucked into his work. There's nothing wrong with being passionate about your career, but his father has an unhealthy obsession with making money. As a result, he lost sight on finding a purpose from his work, causing him to spiral down a dark, empty hole. Tai was never emotionally and physically nurtured by his father. This abandonment can be detrimental to the son's emotional and physical development over time. Tai learned what not to become from his absent father and is passionate about growing Psych2Go into a bigger platform, hoping to raise mental health awareness and help others who've been through similar struggles as him. 2. The Attic Father The Attic Father is someone who struggles with some sort of addiction, whether it's alcoholism, gambling, drug abuse, or pornography. Unfortunately, Tai also relates to this one. Due to his father's unhappiness and competitive nature in being money-hungry, he struggles with alcoholism. If you haven't already, please check out our video later, 7 Ways Alcoholic Parents Affect Their Children. Sons with an Attic Father have a fear of being vulnerable because of their emotional instability their father's instilled within their lives. They are often scared to open up to others, afraid of being let down, hurt, and rejected. This can strongly affect their ability to form close, intimate friendships and relationships with romantic partners. 3. The Harsh Father This type of father is overly strict and tough on his son with frequent angry outbursts. The family often does not feel safe making mistakes and showing their flaws around him. The harsh father could be highly religious and expects everyone in his household to follow his rules and regulations. Sons who grew up with this type of father usually feel like their upbringing was more constricting than life-giving. Often the harsh father guilt-trips his son, blaming him for not being good enough rather than teaching him how to get better at something. This type of father is usually moody, unpredictable, and feared by his son. 4. The Performing Father The performing father is someone who often immerses himself in his work or hobbies. He doesn't enjoy sitting down with his kids and spending quality time with them. Instead, he always feels like he has to keep busy and has a hard time relaxing. The performing father is obsessed with performing well and always pushes himself to get better. Goal-oriented, he focus on results, success, and achievements. In the workplace, he usually has a great reputation and many of his coworkers find him responsible, reliable, and level-headed. At home, however, sons of the performing father feel neglected and rarely ever get their own needs met. As a result, they miss out learning important life skills and may struggle with low-self-esteem issues, feeling like they can't meet the high standards of their own father. 5. The Passive Father Similar to the performing father, the passive father also has a great work ethic in the workplace. But instead of being busy at home too, the passive father leads a very uneventful life after he clocks out from work. Emotionally unavailable, he leaves all the work and chores up to the mom, including picking up the kids from school and spending quality time with them. This father, although he's still physically present in the family, he's often emotionally distant and doesn't interact much with his son. I grew up with a passive father and even to this day, it's hard for me to bond with him. 6. The Abuse of Father The abusive father forms intense emotional and physical wounds in the household. He often mistreats his son through physical, verbal, emotional, and or sexual abuse. This can take a massive toll on the son's emotional and physical development and can deeply hurt his self-esteem. Often, sons of abusive fathers can grow up either being abusive themselves or victims of abusive romantic relationships. Which type of unhealthy father-son relationship do you resonate with? We know how hard it is to talk about toxic family dynamics and want to be a safe, non-judgmental place for you. Please share your story with us down below. We also want to remind you that you are worth so much more than the mistreatment you experienced in your childhood. Toxic patterns are hard to break out of, but with enough heart, self-awareness, and courage, they can be conquered. Please don't forget to also subscribe for more content from Psych2Go and check out our Patreon. Thanks for watching.