Are therapists really encouraging people to cut off their families—or are we asking the wrong question?

In this thought-provoking episode of Not That Girl Anymore, trauma therapist Dylan Bunion explores the growing debate around family estrangement and therapy. Rather than asking whether therapists are breaking families apart, Dylan challenges us to consider a deeper question: Why are so many people entering therapy carrying wounds from the people who were supposed to love and protect them?

Drawing from years of clinical experience, Dylan explains what actually happens in the therapy room. Clients rarely seek permission to leave their families. Instead, they ask heartbreaking questions like, "Am I the problem?" "Why do I always feel guilty?" and "How much more of myself do I have to lose to keep this relationship?"

This compassionate conversation explores the difference between healthy boundaries and self-abandonment, why accountability is essential for reconciliation, and how healing begins by reconnecting with yourself.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why family estrangement usually comes after years of trying to repair the relationship.
• What therapists actually do—and don't do.
• The difference between forgiveness, reconciliation, and self-abandonment.
• Why healthy boundaries are often misunderstood.
• How trauma disconnects people from themselves—and how healing helps them come home again.

Healing isn't about breaking families apart. It's about helping people stop breaking themselves apart just to keep everyone else comfortable.