Summary of Tina Gilbertson's Reconnecting with Your Estranged Adult Child

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 Estrangement is the condition of being physically and/or emotionally distant from one or more family members, either by choice or at the request or decision of the other. It can be roughly divided into three types: total cutoff, emotional estrangement, and on-and-off estrangement. #2 Estrangement can be temporary, and it’s up to you and your child to make sure it isn’t lifelong. It’s becoming easier to reconnect with family every decade, which means it’s becoming harder to disappear. #3 Estrangement doesn’t always mean total cutoff. Some parents feel estranged from their adult children even with regular social contact. The problem is that they begin to feel like strangers or intruders to their kids, rather than close and comfortable as they once were. #4 Estrangement between parents and their adult children can be caused by a variety of factors, including pressure from social networks and the culture at large, personal ambivalence, and a desire for connection with family.