Healing the Unaffirmed

Recognizing Emotional Deprivation Disorder

Baars, Conrad W., y Anna Alberdina Antoinette Terruwe. 2002. Healing the unaffirmed: recognizing emotional deprivation disorder. Rev. & updated ed. New York: Alba House.

Why do so many neurotics fail to respond to psychiatric therapy? Because not all neuroses are caused by childhood repression of emotions. The authors have shown convincingly that certain neurotic symptoms develop only when a person has been deprived of affirming love. Since these unaffirmed deprivation neurotics -- too often misdiagnosed as schizophrenic -- have never repressed their feelings, analytic therapies are to no avail. Shock therapies or major tranquilizers often worsen their suffering. What the unaffirmed needs is affirmation therapy which entails more than giving TLC. The discovery of this well-defined syndrome of deprivation neurosis is most important. In our permissive, rarely repressing society, the number of classical neurotics is steadily declining. That of unaffirmed neurotics, however, is increasing at an alarming rate. Unaffirmed parents rear unaffirmed children who commit suicide or "fight back" by self affirmation, which is futile, and leads to the corruption of society. Recognizing the deprivation neurosis is the first step in correcting, through affirmation, many grave individual and global ills.