We all experience stress. It’s part of being a human being. And stress in and of itself isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Stress can provide drive, motivate us to make positive changes, and alert us to dangers or discomforts we may need to address. However, many of us experience higher than normal levels of stress, and excess stress can take a serious toll on our mental and physical health. Dealing with modern life — jobs, finances, relationships, and politics — can be stressful. Any added adversity, marginalization, loss, or trauma — or any we’re still processing from the past. On the other hand, Emotional Deprivation Disorder is a syndrome (a grouping of symptoms) which results from a lack of authentic affirmation and emotional strengthening by another. A person may have been criticized, ignored, abandoned, neglected, abused, or emotionally rejected by primary caregivers early in life, resulting in the person’s arrested emotional development. Just like children, unaffirmed persons are incapable on their own of developing into emotionally mature adults until they receive authentic affirmation from another person. However, while unaffirmed persons cannot affirm themselves, there is much they can do to help themselves. Maturity is reached when there is a harmonious integration between a person’s intellect, will and emotions and under the guidance of their reason and will.