Overcoming Trauma: Why Silence Does Not Cure Parent Alienation Syndrome
And what hallway bats taught me about abuse, recovery, and relationships
My parents actively tried to destroy each other’s reputation with their four children.
Growing up, I hated and feared my father for his meanness and targeted verbal attacks against my mother.
Eventually, I realized that my mother was doing the same thing, just more covertly.
Both tried to alienate us from the other.
Parent alienation syndrome
Parent alienation syndrome (PAS) or malicious parent syndrome (MPS) is a pattern of destructive actions in which one parent seeks retribution against the other by undermining their reputation with their children and others.
Behaviors can include involving children in adult relational conflict, talking negatively about the other parent and their extended family, lying, manipulation, and false accusations of neglect and abuse.
In 1995, psychologist Ira Turkat identified these collective behaviors as “malicious mother syndrome.” The term has since been modified to refer to both parents, regardless of gender.
