Quotes About Wise Adult

Pia Mellody, spoke of the Adaptive Child as a "kid in grown-up's clothing." The Adaptive Child is a child's version of an adult, the you that you cobbled together in the absence of healthy parenting. Here's a chart detailing the traits of the Adaptive Child, as distinct from the Wise Adult.

ADAPTIVE CHILD WISE ADULT Black & White Nuanced Perfectionistic Realistic Relentless Forgiving Rigid Flexible Harsh Warm Hard Yielding Certain Humble Tight in body Relaxed in body

Everyone gets to go crazy in long-term relationships, but you have to take turns. I call this relational integrity. It means that you hold the (Wise Adult) fort while your partner goes off their (Adaptive Child) rails. It's not an easy practice, but it builds strong relational muscles.