Lindsay C. Gibson’s Treating Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents is a compelling follow-up to her groundbreaking work, Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents. After reading her first book last year, I gained profound insight into my own upbringing and was able to share it with my siblings, sparking meaningful conversations about our shared experiences.

This latest book is geared more toward clinicians, offering therapeutic strategies and deeper clinical analysis. However, Gibson’s approachable and insightful writing style makes it accessible for non-clinicians like me. I appreciated how she further unpacked the complexities of navigating life as an adult child of emotionally immature parents, helping me connect even more dots in my own journey toward understanding and healing.

Gibson’s ability to combine clinical expertise with compassion and clarity is unmatched. Even as a lay reader, I found myself learning valuable tools for reflection, communication, and personal growth. This book serves as both a continuation and expansion of the concepts introduced in her first work, making it an invaluable resource for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of these dynamics.

If you’re a clinician, this book is an essential guide. For readers like me, it’s another step on the path to understanding and reclaiming your emotional well-being. Gibson continues to deliver thoughtful, empathetic, and transformative insights—an absolute must-read for anyone on this journey.

I use Lindsay’s other books frequently in sessions with patients. This book is a therapist dream with how to treat and support from a clinical perspective. Every therapist should have this book on their shelf.

Even though this book is written for clinicians (therapists), I found some really helpful information in here. As an ACEIP (adult child of emotionally immature parents), it was helpful for me to reflect back on my own upbringing and why so often I felt out of place and was told or treated as if I was too emotional. As a result, it wasn't until I went to college and began working with a therapist, that I learned to trust and express my emotions and my intuition. Some of the stories throughout really resonated with me and helped me hold up a mirror to my own experiences. This was a painful process for me yet at the same time, gave me hope. Some of the recommended tips, I have already put into practice - -such as boundaries are key! The author also points out the "Four Horsemen of Self-Defeat"- passivity "it's easier to give in," dissociation "I just go numb and zone out," Immobilization "I was scared stiff," and "Learned Helplessness "What's the use, they have all the power." As an adult, I finally recognized my slip into dissociation around my parents -- I feel completely numb and don't experience any feeling - no joy, no pain, no sadness, no happiness. When I finally realized what was happening - I vowed I would never let myself do that again. It's easier now for me given my mother is dependent on me as she ages so I am able to push back and distance myself (I live out-of-state). I am able to put boundaries and limits down and that feels empowering. I also like the the chapter on the focus on parts work. This also gives insights on how we learned to protect ourselves. For therapists, there is a lot of great information in this book. It helps therapists with their therapeutic approach and their own self awareness. In addition, there are links to websites and a bill of rights for adults.

Thank you to Netgalley and New Harbinger Publications for an ARC and I voluntarily left this review.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series., and this is a great addition to the collection. This is such a helpful book.

Favorite Quote: Parentified children are often referred to as “old souls” —wise and calm beyond their years. But they can pay for their precocity by harboring a squishy center of insecurity and loneliness, a wound formed in their earliest unsupported years.

Synopsis: The fifth book in Gibson’s Emotionally Immature series, Treating Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents gives clinicians a guidebook for working directly with Adult Children of EI Parents (ACEIPs). Gibson dives into what these ACEIPs possibly experiences and gives the therapist/clinician the tools, techniques, and prodding questions to help their clients/patients overcome the inner child wounds that plague them in their adult lives.

Why does this book beguile? From the first book, I was able to see how the discussion around EI parents could apply to any EI adult. This book is specifically written for therapists treating clients, but you may be able to gain some helpful tools in working with ACEIPs in your life and provide a safe space. Ultimately, if you’re not a therapist, I’d skip this book and focus on some of the other Gibson books that are out there.

This is a great follow-up to Gibson's seminal "Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents," which I've recommended to several of my therapy clients. In this she still includes psychoeducation from the first book but now includes further information about trauma work and strategies for overcoming stumbling blocks in the road to recovery. I will definitely be purchasing this book for my practice. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to preview in an exchange for a fair review!

A must have for any therapist working with family systems or any adult with family issues. So basically this is a book for all therapists and adults. A great continuation of the series with an appendix to provide even more depth. It is a clinician’s guide, but accessible to all who have interest.

Thanks to New Harbinger Publications and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I found this book to be a very interesting and insightful read. While it’s geared toward therapists, and some of the language reflects that, I still got a lot out of it as a non-therapist. There were quite a few sections where I felt seen, especially when it came to understanding the dynamics with my emotionally immature parents.

It does a great job explaining behaviors and patterns that stem from emotionally immature parenting, and even though some parts felt a bit technical, the overall concepts were easy enough to follow and very relatable. This book is a great resource if you’re trying to better understand your upbringing or your emotional triggers.

I’d recommend it to anyone looking to make sense of difficult family dynamics, though it might feel a bit heavy on clinical terms for those just starting out. Still, the insights make it worth the read!

The original book was a very good baseline for a better understanding of ACOEIP, but this one is even better for therapists (like me!) trying to better their treatment options. The added appendix are especially useful in my opinion. I will definitely purchase this when it comes out, and keep it as a reference manual for my practice.

Last year, I read Dr. Lindsay Gibson's Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents which was a profound experience that inspired me to pursue a career in therapy focused on adult trauma survivors. In that book, I appreciated learning about the psychological concepts that provided context and validation to the incredibly painful experience of having emotionally immature parents. In this new book, Dr. Gibson dives deeper into those concepts and skillfully introduces many new ones. She addresses crucial topics in psychotherapy such as psychoeducation, therapist boundaries, various modalities for working with trauma survivors, and strategies for overcoming roadblocks to goal progress. She also offers recommendations for further reading and theories to explore, making this book a springboard for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of trauma work. Dr. Gibson makes it easy to understand how her ideas can be applied in therapy by providing script suggestions, handouts, and client examples. Overall, the knowledge I've gained from this book gives me confidence that I can make a meaningful difference in the lives of my future clients. I believe any mental health professional would greatly benefit from the perspectives shared in this book.

I have used the original book for myself and in my practice as a psychotherapist and have found it to be truly so groundbreaking. Having a more accessible and applicable workbook for this work is going to be a great resource. The author knows how to really break things down to a digestible level. I can't wait to incorporate this book into my practice with my clients!

Eye opening. It was hard reading at moments because it hits home, but I'm glad I did. The book is full of insights and really makes you revisit and reconsider personal experiences. A very good read.