Afton Turner, LPCC

09/06/2026

It’s a holiday weekend, which got me thinking about the winter holiday season coming up and with that can come a lot of misunderstanding, pressure, and hurt feelings in families.

As adult children create traditions of their own, split time with partners and in-laws, or simply spend holidays differently than they used to, parents can be left wondering what it means about the relationship.

My newest post looks at why adult kids may not come home for the holidays, how family roles and traditions naturally change over time, and what can help parents stay connected without making one holiday carry the weight of the whole relationship.

When a parent asks, “Why don’t my adult kids come home for the holidays?” I think the question underneath it is often closer to: “Why don’t my kids want to be around me?”Holidays are supercharged with emotional memories. You spent years trying to make them special. You created traditions...

09/03/2026

How do you tell your parents they hurt you without turning the conversation into a fight?

For a lot of adult children, the goal isn’t to punish their parents for the past. It’s to understand the patterns, communicate what still hurts, and hopefully create a healthier relationship moving forward.

I wrote a new post about how to start that conversation, what to say, how to prepare for defensiveness, and what to do if you don’t get the response you hoped for.

If this is a conversation you’ve been thinking about having, this one is for you.

How to talk about childhood hurt without turning the conversation into a fightIf you’re thinking about telling your parents they hurt you, there is probably a reason you want to have this conversation now.If you’re here, you’ve probably done enough of your own reflection that you finally under...

08/26/2026

Do you ever wonder why your adult child seems to blame you for their childhood?

How to hear what they're trying to tell you without taking responsibility for everything that went wrongWhen your adult child starts talking about things from their childhood that negatively impacted them, it can feel like blame. It can feel like they're telling you that you did something wrong.None...

08/18/2026

Navigating conflict with your adult child

You didn't come this far in parenting to feel like a stranger to your own child. But now you may find yourself tiptoeing around topics you used to talk about freely. Replaying conversations in your head, wondering what went wrong. Feeling like no matter what you say, it comes out wrong.

08/18/2026

Are Political Differences Actually Moral Differences? Navigating Parent and Adult Child Relationships

By: Afton Turner LPCCI am a therapist working with parents, adult children, and families navigating parent and adult child conflict, family relationship problems, estrangement, political and value differences, and difficult communication. I help families better understand the patterns underneath the...

07/01/2026

Big news! 🌴

I’m officially accepting virtual therapy clients throughout the state of Florida!

Whether you're navigating family conflict, co-parenting challenges, parent-child relationship struggles, trauma, anxiety, or a major life transition, you don't have to do it alone.

I take a practical, collaborative approach that helps you better understand your patterns, strengthen relationships, and move toward lasting change.

📍Now seeing clients virtually in:
✅ Kentucky
✅ Florida

If you've been thinking about starting therapy, I'd love to see if we're a good fit.

Visit aftonturner.com to learn more or schedule a consultation.

06/07/2026

This is one of the most common questions I hear from clients.

The answer often has less to do with memory and more to do with how the nervous system stored the experience.

When an event remains unprocessed, reminders can trigger the same emotions, physical sensations, and beliefs that were present when it originally happened.

EMDR helps the brain recognize that the event is over.

For many clients, that's when the past finally starts to feel like the past.

06/07/2026

One of the reasons these conversations can feel so painful is that both people are often carrying grief.

They're just grieving different things.

When we understand that, it becomes easier to see the hurt underneath the conflict.

Do you feel you are grieving what was or what has never been?

06/06/2026

Insight is often the first step.

But insight and healing are not the same thing.

Many clients can explain exactly why they struggle with conflict, trust, anxiety, perfectionism, or boundaries.

What frustrates them is that understanding the pattern doesn't stop the pattern.

EMDR helps bridge the gap between knowing something intellectually and actually feeling different emotionally.

06/06/2026

Love matters.

Feeling understood matters too.

Many family relationships struggle not because love is absent, but because people have difficulty recognizing and responding to each other's emotional experiences.

One does not automatically create the other.

Have you ever known you were loved but still felt misunderstood? How did you navigate this?