RelationShit Happens

How your Daddy Issues relate to your Boyfriend Issues, part 2


Listen Later

**CRITICAL NOTE*** ALL people can have "daddy issues", not just women. It unfairly has become a gendered term when men DO have the same exact issues. ALSO side note, my father is the most amazing human being and FATHER to have walked the face of this earth (I'm biased, I know) so even women with "perfect" fathers can have "daddy issues". You are not broken, you are not unfixable. You are NORMAL and therapy helps :)
---
Make sure to check us out on IG for daily vlogs @relationshithappenspodcast
---
Check out this article on Daddy Issues from Healthline.com
The term “daddy issues” gets tossed around a lot, but most of the people doing the tossing are getting it all wrong. It’s become a catchall term to describe almost anything a woman does when it comes to sex and relationships. If she puts out “too soon,” doesn’t want to put out, or is looking for reassurance, she’s got daddy issues. If she prefers older men, likes to get spanked and called a bad girl, or calls her partner “daddy” in bed, must be daddy issues. To set things straight and get you in the know about this almost always misused, misunderstood, and overly gendered concept, we reached out to Amy Rollo, triple licensed psychotherapist and owner of Heights Family Counseling in Houston, Texas.

What does it even mean?
It’s hard to say, seeing as how “daddy issues” isn’t an official medical term or recognized disorder in the recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). This could explain why many experts have an issue with the term, including Rollo. “For the record, I don’t believe in the term ‘daddy issues,’” Rollo says. “Many see this phrase as a way to minimize females’ attachment needs.” Children need a dependable adult in their lives to form secure attachments, Rollo explains. “If this isn’t formed, many people can form avoidant or anxious attachment styles. If a child doesn’t have a father figure in their life consistently, this could lead to an insecure attachment style later in adulthood.” She adds that, for many people, these attachment styles ultimately present as what some refer to as “daddy issues.” Where did this concept originate? We can’t say for sure, but the consensus seems to be that it dates back to Freud and his father complex. This is a term he coined to describe a person who has unconscious impulses and associations as a result of a poor relationship with their father. From that theory came the Oedipus complex, the theory that children have a subconscious attraction to their opposite sex parent.

Oedipus complex refers specifically to boys. Electra complex is used to describe the same theory as applied to girls and their fathers.

Are there different kinds?
Yep! No two people’s experience with their parents is exactly the same. The attachment patterns formed during childhood can affect your attachment styles in your adult relationships.

Attachment styles are categorized as being either secure or insecure, with several subtypes of insecure attachment styles, including:

Anxious-preoccupied. People with this attachment type may be anxious, crave closeness, but feel insecure about their partner leaving them.
Dismissive-avoidant. People with this type may have trouble trusting others for fear that they’ll be hurt. Secure attachment styles result from having a caregiver who was responsive to your needs and emotionally available.
Then there are the insecure attachment styles.

She explains that they often appear as:
being anxious when you aren’t with your partner
needing lots of reassurance that the relationship is OK
seeing any negativity as a sign that the relationship is doomed
It isn’t just about romantic relationships, either. Your relationship with your caregivers and your attachment style also affect other close relationships, including your friendships.
Who’s got ’em?
Everyone. Daddy issues aren’t ju

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

RelationShit HappensBy Olivia & KC