ESSAY by MOLLY B. SIMMONS
PHOTOGRAPH by N0TF0R$A1E
Attachment theory is very much in our cultural consciousness right now, and even if you’re only passingly aware of it, you probably know that our attachment styles as adults stem from our very first human relationships: the ones we have with our parents. Whether we like it or not, we often play out the parent-child dynamics that we’re familiar with our romantic partners later on in life. The cliches of “daddy issues” and “mommy issues” are very much rooted in truth—that which we lacked as children we seek in adulthood. As author Chitra Divakaruni says, “your childhood hunger is the one that never leaves you.” As books such as Attached, Polysecure, and The Body Keeps the Score explore, from varying perspectives, the things that happen to us in our early years have an indelible effect on our psyches as we grow up.
