Emotional healing: 5 indicators of an abandonment wound
An abandonment wound can deeply impact one's emotional well-being, stemming from experiences of feeling rejected, neglected, or left behind. These wounds often originate from childhood experiences or significant relationships. Identifying these signs is the first step towards acknowledging and healing from the pain. Here are common indicators of an abandonment wound.
Fear of rejection
People who have experienced abandonment often have a greater dread of being rejected. They have a constant fear of rejection, which can lead them to believe that they are unworthy of anybody or anything. Even when there is no evidence to support the fears, they could shy away from developing close relationships with anyone and can develop excessive anxiety about being left behind.
Trust issues
People who have abandonment wounds have had someone they relied on abandon them. As a result, these people understood they could not rely on others to take care of and protect them. They commit to achieving self-sufficiency to deal with the disparity. They maintain a distance from everyone. They present a tough front, maintain their guard, and remain unavailable.
Difficulty setting boundaries
The constant desire to please others is often coupled with abandonment. They frequently feel that they must live up to the expectations of others around them and be good enough for them. They believe that if they create boundaries for themselves, they could let many people down. As a result, they struggle to create boundaries for themselves and strive to put others first.
Self-sabotaging relationships
In adulthood, the fear of abandonment prevents people from developing trusting relationships. People who have experienced abandonment experience an emotional pendulum that swings back and forth between fears of abandonment and fears of engulfment, which may seem incongruous. They cling to people tenaciously, but intimacy makes them uncomfortable. Avoiders of intimacy worry about being dominated, ignored, and controlled, which ultimately leads to losing oneself.
Increased emotional sensitivity
People with abandonment wounds tend to have heightened emotional sensitivity and mood swings. People who have abandonment scars are extremely sensitive emotionally to anything that makes them feel rejected, such as feeling unimportant, judged, misunderstood, slighted, ignored, or overlooked. They might have flashbacks that cause emotional hijacking. The harsh truth of being alone is too much to handle. They feel empty and lost.
