Dr Joshua Coleman: Understanding Family Estrangement

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Dr Joshua Coleman is a psychologist and the author of Rules of Estrangement: Why Adult Children Cut Ties and How to Heal the Conflict. He specialises in relationships between parents and their adult children and has written and spoken extensively about family estrangement.

We have brought together six of his talks covering:

• five common mistakes made by estranged parents;
• the dos and don’ts of reaching out;
• coping with the emotional pain of estrangement;
• understanding what an estranged adult child may be asking for;
• writing a letter of amends; and
• the particular experience of estranged grandparents.

Coleman does not offer easy answers or promise that every relationship can be repaired. His approach asks parents to consider the adult child’s perspective and their own possible contribution to the conflict, while also recognising the profound grief and uncertainty that estrangement can cause.

Some of these talks are substantial, while others are brief introductions to a particular subject. You can watch them individually or work through the complete collection.

Watch the playlist:

Dr Joshua Coleman: Understanding Family Estrangement

The videos were originally produced and published by Families Divided TV. Inclusion in this collection does not necessarily imply endorsement of every opinion expressed.