Family Enmeshment or Boundary Diffusion
A developmental environment where emotional, psychological, or practical boundaries between family members were unclear, inconsistent, or routinely crossed. A child may have been relied on for emotional support, decision-making, or role fulfilment beyond their developmental capacity, or experienced pressure to align with family needs, moods, or values over their own. Over time, this can shape difficulty identifying personal needs, guilt around autonomy, confusion about responsibility, and patterns of over-involvement or self-erasure in relationships.
