Qué es la Codependencia y Cómo Afecta Tus Relaciones

Key wellness / growth strategies mentioned

• Recognize codependency as a dysfunctional pattern

  • Defined as repeatedly caring for others while neglecting your own needs, desires, and interests.
  • Often shows up as “I sacrifice myself / I do everything,” while the other person doesn’t do their part, leading to worsening dissatisfaction.

• Understand the “transgenerational script” (how patterns repeat)

  • Codependency can be passed down from grandparents to grandchildren (and sometimes skips generations).
  • Families may repeat harmful beliefs via “scripts” stored in relational roles (e.g., parent/child dynamics).
  • Clue: you may keep living the same “plot” with different partners—the actors change, but the pattern remains the same.

• Identify how codependency can form through “symbiosis”

  • In transactional analysis terms, codependency can develop as a relationship pattern where one person manages the other’s emotional/child state, creating a fused dynamic.
  • The goal in therapy is to move away from that fused “one functioning as one” dynamic toward healthier individuality.

• Use therapy to create realization (awareness)

  • A first step is admitting something isn’t working and bringing it to discussion (instead of staying silent).
  • Realization is framed as a “big step” toward change.

• Address shame and guilt that block help-seeking

  • Common feelings in codependency: shame, guilt, fear of being seen as weak, and belief that one is “not good enough.”
  • These feelings can cause people to delay care until the situation becomes very advanced.
  • Therapy is positioned as a place to be heard without judgment or confrontation escalating.

• Prefer parallel work in couples therapy (when applicable)

  • The approach favors couples therapy but in parallel, because:
    • each partner may have their own life script, and
    • their scripts can be complementary, reinforcing the cycle.
  • This can help the partner who isn’t initially seeking therapy understand impact and make new decisions.

• Psychoeducation + group therapy + re-deciding life choices

  • Strategies used in the described case:
    • psychoeducation
    • group therapy
    • “decontaminating” internal beliefs inherited from family (e.g., grandmother’s messages)
    • time + reflection to re-decide a different life path.

• Work toward independence from the “therapist dependence” stage

  • Healing is described as eventually being able to say:
    • “Can I go on without you now?”
  • The therapist helps the patient depend “up to a point,” then supports growth into autonomy.

• Don’t self-blame for having learned the script

  • The script is seen as a survival strategy formed in stressful events.
  • Message: no guilt/shame for the past, with emphasis on change from the present onward.

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Example of change (from the talk)

A patient who experienced abuse-related codependency was able to:

• give an ultimatum that led to the partner entering rehabilitation
• eventually end the relationship
• grow into a more independent life, including social work
• shift from repeating the inherited pattern to choosing a new path.

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Presenters / sources

• Nelson Guevara — psychiatrist and integrative humanistic psychotherapist (primary guest)
• Transactional Analysis theorists mentioned:
  • Gloria Noriega
  • Muriel James
• Eric Berne — referenced (life script concept, 1960s–1970s)
• PHI — mentioned as an affiliation/collaboration context (no further details)