Doormat Mom: Breaking the Silence on Parental Estrangement

The Dr. Phil Podcast

Dr. Phil McGraw

Mental Health, Self-improvement, Society & Culture, Education, Health & Fitness

4.4 • 13.2K Ratings

🗓️ 30 May 2025

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Why are so many families breaking apart—and is social media making it even harder to heal?

Across America, parent-child estrangement is on the rise, with nearly one in four adults now cut off from a close family member. Laura, a single mom known online as "Doormat Mom," shares how her youngest daughter walked away after building a new life overseas. Kristen, a licensed therapist, explains why she chose to go "no contact" with her own mother—and why she believes not every relationship should be saved. April, a mother of four, opens up about losing her daughter to a cycle of hurt she says started long before her time, while her mother, Karen, says the blame being thrown at her is both unfair and incomplete. Dr. Phil breaks down the shifting cultural norms, the toxic messages spreading on social media, and the hard conversations families must have if they want to find their way home again.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	There's a big shift happening that doesn't get talked about much, but you can see it all over social media.
0:07.0	More adult kids are cutting off their parents and sharing every detail online, often with a lot of support from others.
0:16.0	If you've scrolled through TikTok, Instagram, or Reddit, you've probably seen hashtags like toxic family and
0:23.6	no contact. People are opening up about family drama, calling out bad behavior, and explaining
0:30.6	why they've decided to walk away. For many, going no contact isn't about leaving.
0:38.6	It's about finally putting themselves first, and they're proud of it.
0:42.9	Right now, about one in four adults is estranged from a parent, and experts think it's becoming
0:48.3	even more common.
0:50.2	So on tonight's Dr. Phil podcast, we're digging into whether it's just the new normal for families.
0:57.1	And if you do cut someone off, is there any way to fix things later?
1:03.7	Were you a really good parent who did the best they could?
1:06.6	And yet your child has decided to be in a grateful little bastard.
1:10.5	How long have you been estranged from your daughter?
1:12.9	About a year now.
1:14.1	I spent 25 years tolerating her behavior,
1:17.9	and I finally just said, I'm done.
1:20.5	Enough is enough is enough.
1:21.2	This has started a viral movement.
1:23.0	I've hit her nerve.
1:24.0	Is there nothing you could do to help heal that relationship?
1:28.3	There's something happening in society right now that nobody really talks about, but it's everywhere. More and more we're seeing adult children,
1:47.0	not just walking away from their parents,
	...

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