Theory and research based on the experiences of adult twins
Twinship Sometimes Feels Like a Scary Roller Coaster Ride Insight into extreme anger, loneliness, and longing for twin closeness I have devoted many hours, days, weeks, and years trying to understand the love and loyalty, rage, guilt, and humiliation that twins have for one another. Fighting and even estrangement can make a twin relationship unbearable. …
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The Legacy of Twinship When the life stories of all the adult twins who spoke with me are considered together, some “truths” become evident. This chapter will summarize the most important findings of this study. No one finding is more important than another. Not All Twins Are Alike The most obvious finding of this research …
What Is Important About Twin Fascination Twinships can tell us about close relationships. Twins have been considered a source of fascination and wonder / repulsion and fear since the beginning of recorded history. Mythology, religion, literature, film, and art use twins to represent magical powers of closeness and the opposite—discord and rage. It was not …
The deep interconnection of psychological identity between twins is real. Unlike single-born infants and toddlers, shared identity is inevitable and normal. Some aspect of a twin’s sense of self is actually shared. A twin has an identity as a twin and an identity as an individual. Twins are closer than brothers and sisters because they …
Working with twins can be difficult and confusing if the therapist does not understand the profound nature of twin primary attachment. Actually, it can be shocking for a nontwin therapist to try and take seriously the commotion that is created when twins fight and then make up. Working with adult twins will always be easier …