EMOTIONAL ENLIGHTENMENT: AN OPTIMISTIC APPROACH TOWARDS PARENTIFICATION

Abstract

Parentification is generally described as a negative phenomenon that deprives a child of his/her childhood overnight. The parentified child faces a flood of expectations for which s/he is not prepared. His/her parents expect him/her to ‘automatically’ adopt the role of a parent. In Pakistan, parents are the most important pillars in the foundation of the family and if one of them suffers from a long-term sickness, the whole structure falls apart. From the child’s perspective, it is extremely painful. S/he not only loses the blessings of previous physical and emotional assistance but also must perform myriads of responsibilities. So, parentification seems to be a negative experience. This article challenges this idea by proving that parentification can be a positive, pleasurable experience. It focuses on the researcher’s parentification experience when her mother underwent a stroke. The data collection methods include audio recordings, diary notes and discussions with the doctor. The data analyses focus on the paralinguistic features of the researcher’s speech that she had with the research participant. The research outcomes exhibit the special features of the parentified speech. It also suggests that through mental readiness and planning, the potential parentified figure, can make parentification a rewarding experience.

Keywords: parentification, empathetic stress, emotional burnout, self-esteem, denial, regression, frigidity.