Emotional pain, severe consequences, and even the prospect of death does not stop their caring or commitment. Clinicians call this traumatic bonding. This means they have a certain dysfunctional attachment that occurs in the presence of danger, shame, or exploitation. There often is seduction, deception or betrayal. Always there is some form of danger or risk.
Some relationships are traumatic.
What Lucy does to Charlie Brown around holding the football every year is a betrayal we have grown to expect. Abuse cycles such as found in domestic violence are built around trauma bonds. Misplaced loyalty as found in exploitive cults or in incest families or in hostage and kidnapping situations. Codependents who live with alcoholics, or compulsive gamblers, or sex addicts and will not leave no matter what their partners do may have suffered enough to have a traumatic bond. All rights reserved.