LibraryScenariosWhen perfectionist parents and children trigger each other's worst patterns
Scenario

When perfectionist parents and children trigger each other's worst patterns

My teenage daughter and I are both perfectionists but in completely different ways — she paralyzes herself before starting anything and I compulsively overwork everything until it's 'perfect' — and we keep triggering each other's worst tendencies instead of helping each other find balance. We'll start working on something together, like her college applications, and within twenty minutes we're both stressed and snapping at each other because my pushing makes her freeze up and her freezing makes me want to control everything.

Patan
Online
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More people experience this than they realize.

What we've seen

Two people sharing a core wound are discovering that similar struggles don't automatically create mutual understanding — they can amplify each other's patterns instead.

Ideas that help explain it
Worth thinking about

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