Fatherless Daughters Syndrome Awareness

The subject of 'fatherless daughter syndrome' is very close to my heart. I haven't seen or heard from my own father since the age of 11 years old, some 41 years ago now!

Going from the 'apple of his eye' to no contact had a huge impact on my choices in life & relationships. Until I started researching the impact of fathers abandoning their daughters in childhood, I had no idea it was actually a 'syndrome'.

I have been doing the inner work on my own healing around childhood trauma and adult trauma for a number of years and as I come out of the shadows of my past, I've found a passion in wanting to help others going through the same journey I too have travelled.

Here's what you need to know from the research I found, and how once you are better equipped with knowledge around this subject, you may just be ready to start your healing journey with yourself and a therapy of your choice. Feel free to reach out to me on my contact page with any questions and or personal bookings.

Missing the much needed emotional foundation:

The multi-layered fatherless daughter syndrome stems from the absence of a strong foundation that a father lays for his girl. There are certain things which girls take for granted from their father which are missed in his absence.

They miss the male affection, unconditional protection in tough times and the presence of a loving and affectionate person in times of accomplishments. Emotional caregivers in the form of a friend, father figure, grandfather, an elder brother, uncle or a very closely related male member of a family, therapist or a coach may alter the life path of a fatherless woman in a great way.

But when this out-of-the-family support system is not available, she may develop a tendency to gravitate towards unhealthy relationships from the need to be loved and accepted.

The rewards and costs:

Though fatherless daughter syndrome brews a constant feeling of insecurity fanning the fear of rejection and abandonment, the study also revealed another important aspect. A fatherless girl can also have some unique coping mechanisms practiced over years for survival.

On being thrust with responsibility at a very young age, a girl without father grows faster than her peers. She acquires special qualities of self-reliance, perseverance and leadership. She is the one to understand the importance of loyalty, compassion and companionship in the path of relationship development.

On the flip side, shouldering too much burden from a very young age may have a serious toll on her mental and physical health. She may be cranky or over stressed and suffer from periodic depression. This may also leave her vulnerable to chronic ailments over the passage of time.

Why should society care for fatherless daughter syndrome?

A healthy and balanced society cannot be built with broken people. When the world is speaking highly of women empowerment and their equal rights, it is important to address this essential part of life: the trauma and the subsequent psychological issues that surface due to loss of the father.

A considerable population of girls without fatherly care will grow up with lots of emotional issues causing hindrance in normal relationship development whether it is with friends or partners or with society.

Even though single families are growing in numbers, emphasis should be on traumatized girls losing their fathers at a very tender age. They are the worst sufferers as the inability to cope with the sudden loss impedes healthy grooming and thriving.

Fatherless daughter syndrome should be considered as a serious psychological blow calling for special care like any other psychological issues as it directly impacts society. A fatherless daughter developing a dysfunctional disorder is likely to induce the same behavioral pattern in her family and create more broken children and mentally dysfunctional adults. Since what an individual receives in his/her life would likely pass on to the posterity.

We should introspect as a society

The society, by and large, focuses on the consequences rather than analyzing the cause for the dysfunctional behavior of a person. Short-term solutions are provided but that that does not help in preventing the problem.

We wonder at the startling stats of depression, teenage pregnancies, suicide rates, school dropouts, abuse, mental issues, incarceration, crime and other social evils prevailing in fatherless families. But do we delve deep to analyze the cause and uproot it?

The global community, as a whole, should strive to raise awareness on this social problem and create a support system for young fatherless girls to minimize the effects of deprivation on their own selves and society.

What can help?

Here's what helped me navigate my way through the trauma.

Regression therapy in this lifetime into childhood trauma with hypnotherapy and also past life regression.

EFT and meridian energy psychotherapy which helped to continue to release any abandonment issues and other emotions in my energetic system.

Basic talking therapy, CBT also worked for me to talk through and understand an abusive relationship I encountered later inlife.

It's important to learn your worth and to love yourself unconditionally while also building healthy boundaries for yourself and the relationships around you be that family, friends or lovers.

Basically becoming brand new, with your own healthy beliefs, boundaries and coping mechanisms while you still navigate the healing process, however long that takes. Eventually you become used to this new and better more healthier way of being and as mentioned above you become brand new, not broken just stronger with much softer edges and a new sense of confidence and balance. You learn to trust yourself again and stop f***ing yourself over!

I hope this blog has been informative and helpful, feel free to reach out to me if you're ready to start the healing process. We can start exactly where you are right now and one step at a time, your pace, your healing journey.

Much love and so many blessings,

JH x