Avoidant Attachment Style
Therapy for Avoidant Attachment Style
Understanding your attachment style (such as avoidant attachment style) and that of your partner is one of the most important things you can do to help move towards a secure, stable relationship. The simplified idea behind attachment theory is that we tend to fall on a spectrum with avoidant and anxious attachment at either end and secure attachment in the ideal center. Where we land on the spectrum at any given time depends on a host of internal and external factors including where our partners are landing.
While a little wiggle to the left and right is pretty normal, the further from center you get the more distress is involved and typically the more reactive your partner will become. Relationships seek balance so the more avoidant one partner becomes, the more the other will move towards the anxious side and vice-versa.
Depending on our upbringing (yes, this is where we get to blame our parents), we can be wired to fall at different points on the attachment spectrum and, to keep things interesting, we typically pick a partner who is an equidistance from center on the opposite side. So if you think your partner is way off center, you probably are too.
Individuals who have more of an avoidant attachment style tend equate intimacy with a loss of independence and while they may appear to be strong and independent, they can actually be quite fragile with strong fears of abandonment, rejection or loss. They tend to not have the expectation that their wishes, needs or feelings will be recognized and are often quick to think negatively when their partners express needs.
Folks on the avoidant end of the attachment spectrum will often distance themselves which results in their partners pursuing more aggressively. The pursuing is often perceived by the distancer as excessive neediness or out of control anger, thus justifying their withdrawal and completely missing their role in the loop. Avoidant folks also tend to miss that their partner’s distress is often a completely understandable response to their distancing. Even if their partner manages to calm their distress, the problem of the avoidance still exists.
If You Find Yourself with an Avoidant Partner
Avoidant partners are often masters at making their significant others feel like the “crazy one.” If you are finding yourself using more and more manipulative behaviors in order to get your partner to react or if your anxiety is through the roof but you find yourself having a hard time communicating this in a productive way, your partner may be engaging in avoidant attachment style tendencies.
- Stop chasing.
This will feel completely counter-intuitive because it probably seems like your chasing is the only thing keeping the connection. The reality is that your anxiety, whether warranted or not, feels engulfing to you partner. Creating some space can give your partner a chance to become less reactive and hopefully more connected.
- Stop relying on your partner to ease your anxiety.
Work with a counselor or connect with other members of your support system to help with this. Trusting that you are going to be ok no matter what happens will help tremendously.
- Question your own commitment to the relationship.
Not that you should leave – but taking some ambivalence about the relationship for yourself means that your partner can’t hold on to it all.
- Explore what your choice of a partner says about you.
There’s usually a reason why we pick who we pick, gaining insight into this can help steer your existing relationship in a new direction or help you pick differently in the future.
- Learn to communicate to your partner what you think they are feeling and why.
This way of communicating can provide an emotional mirror that will help the avoidant person gain more personal awareness.
- Understand
That if you need a great deal of intimacy in your relationship, you may have chosen a partner who will have great difficulty giving it to you.
- Recognize
That when the avoidant person shuts down and becomes dismissive that means they are anxious and are trying to clamp down on the experienced emotions. It’s not about you, don’t take it personally.
If You are the Avoidant Partner
Realize that your calm emotional exterior and rational approach to relationship issues is likely making your partner feel invalidated, dismissed, and more anxious. This will make them become even more demanding and leave you with less breathing room.
While your gut may be screaming for you to run away or shut down, the best way to get the space you want is actually to lean into the relationship. Acknowledge and validate how your partner is feeling; practice maintaining physical touch until you can relax into it; or simply acknowledge to your partner that you feel like shutting down or running away – that’s actually very connecting.
If you’re an avoidant partner you may feel confused by what you perceive as the unreasonable emotional demands and neurotic nature of your partner. You might be mystified by accusations that you don’t care and are not there for your loved one. If you think your partner is “the crazy one,” take a step back and ask yourself what you might be doing to contribute to the crazy; not if but how – because you are.
Therapy for avoidant attachment style is really powerful and one of my favorite things to work on with clients. There are usually very specific and tangible things that folks can tweak that can have a profound impact on relationships. It’s also not limited to just romantic partnerships; attachment patterns play out in friendships and even the workplace.
Anxious Attachment Style
What is Avoidant Attachment?
Avoidant attachment is a type of attachment style that develops in early childhood and affects how individuals form and maintain relationships throughout their lives. People with an avoidant attachment style tend to feel uncomfortable with intimacy, emotional closeness, and reliance on others, and may even avoid these situations altogether.
In early childhood, an avoidant attachment style can develop when a child perceives their caregiver as unreliable, rejecting, or unresponsive to their needs. Because of this, the child may end up developing a coping mechanism of detachment or withdrawal as a result, learning to rely on themselves rather than their caregiver for emotional and physical needs.
In adulthood, individuals with an avoidant attachment style may struggle with forming and maintaining close relationships, as they tend to prioritize independence and self-reliance over emotional connection. When they feel exposed or endangered, they could find it difficult to communicate their feelings or connect emotionally with others. They might even turn away or retreat.
When is Therapy for Avoidant Attachment Style needed?
If you have a hard time with intimacy; value independence at the expense of connection; believe that conflict should not exist within a healthy relationship; or find yourself evading commitment by being vague and indirect, you might benefit from therapy for avoidant attachment style.
How much does Therapy for Avoidant Attachment Style cost?
My current rate for for Therapy for avoidant attachment style issues is $175 per appointment.
How do I know if Therapy for Avoidant Attachment Style is right for me?
It’s pretty common that folks reach out for therapy related to avoidant attachment style issues when their relationship is in jeapordy and their partner or couples therapist has confronted them about avoidant type behaviors. Individuals that lean towards the avoidant end of the attachment spectrum often don’t see themselves as needing to change and it may not be until several failed relationships that they become more aware of patterns of behavior that are contributing factors.
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