If you have experience of a narcissistic mother...

[NarcKiddo]

...and read the following sentences in an article about a public figure, would this raise a red flag for you?

This is in relation to daughters currently aged 13 and 16.

"Maybe I'm too honest with them but I pretty much tell them everything. My daughters sometimes describe themselves as my unpaid therapists."

I imagine most people would not give those sentences much attention. They might think "how nice they are so close".  My immediate thought is "that doesn't sound right".

[moglow]

I think, those poor girls. For what possible reason do they have to hear all that? What ever happened to nurturing their innocence? Surely you can find your own damn therapist and let them be kids while they can??

[Cat of the Canals]

Definite red flag alert! 

Another red flag phrase I see fairly often: a parent referring to their child as their "best friend." Or vice versa. I think normies think it sounds like a nice thing, but we know it's not.

But "unpaid therapis..." is even worse, imo. Yikes! And that the daughters describe themselves that way is very telling.

[sunshine702]

That is Parentification.  Where the children have to take care of the parent's emotional needs.  It is not healthy and creates big problems later on.

Parents need to be the leaders  for emotionally healthy children.

[easterncappy]

That is Parentification.  Where the children have to take care of the parent's emotional needs.  It is not healthy and creates big problems later on.

Parents need to be the leaders  for emotionally healthy children.

It's being "best friends". When you're 5 or 15 years old, you might even "like it". It's a little uncomfortable, but feels so special.

Then you realize you spent your childhood with a clingy mom-girlfriend hybrid dumping financial, sexual, marital, etc. problems onto you instead of playing or hanging out with your friends or doing other age-appropriate activities.

And you'll never get that time back.

[Poison Ivy]

I often felt like my ex-husband's unpaid therapist, and I told him I didn't want that role.