Estrangement from an adult child is unlike any other loss. Your child is alive, yet the relationship has gone silent. Most people around you cannot fully understand why this is so devastating. You have more company in this than you may realize, and healing is possible regardless of whether contact is ever restored.
When a loved one dies, there are rituals, condolences, and a socially accepted space to grieve. Estrangement offers none of that. Your child is alive, which makes the loss invisible to the world around you.
When you do mention it, many people respond with questions that place the weight on you: "What happened between you two?" So many parents stop mentioning it at all, and the silence makes it heavier.
Your child is alive, which means the loss has no ceremony, no closure, and no end point. You may be waiting, hoping, and grieving all at once, sometimes for years. That kind of suspended grief is exhausting in a way that is very difficult to explain to others.
What counted as good parenting in one generation is described very differently today. Many parents who loved their children deeply and did their genuine best are now being held to standards that simply did not exist when they were raising them. Understanding this shift, honestly and without becoming defensive, is one of the most important parts of the work.
Estrangement carries a particular shame and secrecy that keeps parents isolated. Far more families are quietly living with this than you likely realize. It has been called a silent epidemic, and that invisibility makes an already painful experience feel even more lonely.
Our work together is built around understanding what happened, developing honest compassion for yourself, and building a life that moves forward. Reconciliation is always held as a hope. The work itself stands on your healing, independent of what your child chooses to do.
We work through the cultural, generational, and family dynamics that contributed to the estrangement, so you can understand it without carrying all of it as personal fault.
We give space to the parts of this loss that are hardest to name, including the fear, the anger, the guilt, and the exhaustion of waiting. Grief processed honestly is the foundation of genuine peace.
For those who want to pursue contact, we work on communication approaches that are empathic and non-defensive, and that genuinely increase the likelihood of being heard.
Healing yourself keeps every door open. Building a life with meaning and stability is both the right thing and the thing most likely to keep possibilities alive.
"Your healing can begin today, right where you are. You are allowed to move forward, exactly as things stand."The guiding principle of our work together
This question matters, and it deserves an honest answer. Most estrangements involve some combination of family dynamics, generational differences in what is considered harmful, outside influences such as partners or therapy, and the specific histories of both parent and child. Exploring your own role honestly is part of the work. So is setting down the crushing weight of assuming total responsibility for something far more complex than any single person can own.
Research on estrangement shows that the majority of parents and adult children do eventually reconnect, though timelines vary widely and reconciliation, when it comes, can take years. Our work together stands on your healing and your peace, with reconciliation held as the hope throughout.
Yes. Many people I work with have had no contact for months or years. Sessions focus on what you can understand, process, and work toward, all on your own terms. Real progress is available to you, even when working through this independently.
Yes, completely. Many parents feel that wanting relief is a kind of abandonment of the hope for reconnection. It is a fear worth naming, and it is worth releasing. Healing yourself keeps every door open. For many families, a parent who has done their own work, found their footing, and stepped out of pain is far more approachable than one still consumed by it.
Estrangement requires a specific understanding of the forces involved, including the cultural and generational shifts that shape how adult children define harm, the role of outside relationships, and the particular grief that comes with ambiguous loss. Sessions are structured and goal-directed, moving toward concrete understanding and real steps forward.
A 50-minute session is $199.95. You receive a receipt you can submit to your insurance provider or use as an income tax deduction. Sessions are available in person at my Pointe Claire office or online by phone or Zoom for anyone across Quebec. Start with a free 15-minute consultation to see whether working together makes sense.
Just a brief conversation to talk about what you are carrying and whether working together makes sense.