Back to Alcoholic and Dysfunctional Families  Characteristics of
Dysfunctional Families  Below is a list of common symptoms and
behavior patterns in dysfunctional families, and their affect on
Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families. You may find some or
all of these characteristics in a family, depending on how
healthy or unhealthy it is.  1) Abuse Children suffer from
physical, emotional, or sexual abuse; neglect; or witnessing the
abuse of someone else. As adults, they may carry the childhood
pain throughout their lives, as the passing of time does not
seem to heal trauma.  2) Perfectionism Parents' constant
criticism can leave a child to feel a deep sense of
worthlessness and shame. As adults, they may internalize those
negative messages and keep criticizing themselves.  3) Rigid
rules, lifestyle, and/or belief systems Controlling parents who
maintain there is only one right way to be, or only one right
way to do something, can make it difficult to have fun or be
spontaneous as adults.  4) The "No talk r