Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) in Adults: Signs, Causes, and Therapy

Louise Hartnett
December 9, 2025
Authored by: Louise Hartnett, B.A.
Edited by: Emma Loker, BSc, PgDip
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Reactive attachment disorder (RAD) is a condition typically caused by maltreatment, abuse, and neglect during childhood.1 It has profound impacts on how a child feels about themselves and forms relationships with others. 

While absent, inconsistent, and chaotic caregivers can cause children to develop insecure attachment styles, attachment disorders are rarer and more severe. There’s a clear link between childhood trauma and RAD, as people with RAD also often have symptoms of complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD).2 

Plus, even though the DSM-5 limits a RAD diagnosis to childhood, many people feel as though they experience symptoms of reactive attachment disorder in adulthood. Childhood has a big impact on the way our brains develop. Without appropriate healing, these changes can stay with us, impacting our adult relationships and emotional lives. 

Despite attachment disorders being caused by extreme circumstances, there is hope for adults with RAD. Though they may struggle with their mental health and relationships, there’s a wide range of support out there to help people with attachment trauma.

This article can help increase understanding and awareness by exploring:

  • What reactive attachment disorder is and how it’s caused
  • Signs of RAD in adults
  • The impact of RAD symptoms in adult relationships
  • Recovering from RAD with therapy 
Young couple outdoors, standing face to face with serious expressions, exhibiting reactive attachment disorder

What Is Reactive Attachment Disorder?

RAD is a condition caused by trauma in early childhood. This trauma is typically social neglect and maltreatment – conditions that prevent a child from forming a predictable and nurturing bond with a trusted caregiver.1  

Though many orphanages and foster homes provide a great deal of support for children in their care, some don’t. Children in overcrowded care settings are most at risk of developing RAD because they’re less likely to receive the emotional, mental, and physical support needed to form a secure attachment.1 

Children with ill parents are also at risk. If they grow up in a home where there’s mental illness or physical disabilities, they might be unintentionally neglected and suffer attachment trauma.1 

When children do not develop a secure attachment, they stop seeking one. They no longer seek comfort when hurt, avoid emotional closeness, and turn inward. They may also struggle to develop their language and other cognitive skills. Additionally, down the line, they might become behaviorally challenging and require a great deal of support to heal from their experiences.1 

Fortunately, many children recover from RAD if they receive the right support and succeed in forming a secure attachment with a caregiver. However, without healing, some adults still suffer the results of attachment trauma and have symptoms of RAD.

In addition, having RAD increases the risk of depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, and low stress tolerance.1 Plus, as mentioned, reactive attachment disorder in adults may be accompanied by complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD).2 

Disinhibited social engagement disorder (DSED) is another type of attachment disorder caused by severe neglect in childhood. However, although DSED shares many causes with RAD, it has an opposing set of symptoms. 

We’ll next explore the signs of RAD in adulthood, which often show up in emotional lives.

Signs of RAD in Adulthood

Adults with RAD typically have similar symptoms to those they had when children. For example, if they found it difficult to be soothed as an infant, as an adult, they may avoid emotional intimacy and struggle to regulate their emotions. 

Signs of RAD in adulthood can also include being withdrawn or detached, having difficulty forming and maintaining close relationships, and experiencing outbursts of anger or impulsivity. If someone with RAD learned at an early age that people won’t be there for them, this can cause a deep wound and a belief that no one is safe or trustworthy. They might avoid forming close relationships entirely because they don’t believe they’ll be safe in them.

When it comes to how RAD impacts emotional regulation, there’s a lot of crossover with insecure attachment, C-PTSD, and personality disorders, as these are also connected to childhood neglect. If someone struggles to regulate their emotions, they may: 

  • Have mood swings
  • Appear to overreact to small issues
  • Get overwhelmed by their feelings
  • Find it difficult to have conversations about their emotions
  • Shut down or withdraw in moments of vulnerability
  • Seem frustrated, as though they’re holding a lot of tension or resentment

Additionally, those with attachment trauma, like people with RAD, often struggle with negative feelings about themselves. This is because traumatic experiences interfere with their sense of self.3 Even though these signs of RAD can seem anti-social, they’re actually a form of self-protection stemming from a very difficult and painful place.

How Reactive Attachment Disorder Impacts Relationships

If a child doesn’t receive effective treatment, their symptoms of reactive attachment disorder can continue to disrupt the attachments they form in adulthood. These disruptions can affect their ability to experience the full potential of friendships and romance.

One impact of RAD on relationships is struggles with giving and receiving affection. Physical and emotional warmth are key to connecting with loved ones. Without affection, people with RAD and their partners may struggle to feel genuinely close to each other. 

Conflict is a normal part of adult relationships. It’s never comfortable, but it can be especially challenging for people with insecure attachment styles and attachment disorders. If someone with RAD struggles with emotional regulation and mood swings, communication can suffer and escalate conflicts unnecessarily.

Equally, people with RAD may avoid difficult conversations altogether because the necessary vulnerability is too threatening. This can mean misunderstandings go unresolved, and partners’ feelings are never aired. As a result, relationships may end prematurely.

The sexual well-being of people with RAD and their partners can also suffer. If there isn’t adequate caregiving within the couple, sexual satisfaction can drop.4 In addition, people with attachment insecurity are more likely to struggle with jealous thoughts and behaviors. For example, someone may go to extreme lengths to prevent or prove cheating, which can break down trust.5 

Finally, people with RAD in romantic relationships may feel as though they never belong. The wounds from chronic neglect in early childhood can leave deep impressions, preventing adults with RAD from feeling truly safe and connected. Yet, despite how RAD affects trust and connection, it’s possible to get support and build the ability to forge deeper relationships.

Healing Reactive Attachment Disorder

With the right treatment, there is hope for adults with reactive attachment disorder. Depending on your experience, your treatment might target a combination of things, like depression or C-PTSD, alongside treating attachment trauma. It’s important that any co-occurring conditions are targeted because they’re usually linked in some way. 

Healing from reactive attachment disorder in adulthood will most likely involve a type of talking therapy. However, before choosing a therapist, it’s good to check that they’re trauma-informed. Since your therapy might involve talking about traumatic events in your past, it’s crucial that these are handled sensitively and carefully. Trauma-informed therapists know how to do so to prevent retraumatization.

There’s a wide range of trauma-informed therapies available, including:

  • Trauma-focused therapy: Aims to help people process what happened in childhood. Over time, it can provide relief from symptoms and empower people with strategies to help them cope with future triggers.
  • Humanistic therapies: These therapies target overall well-being by providing a non-judgmental space in which people can discuss feelings, experiences, and gain a deeper understanding of self. From there, they can identify needs, preferences, and boundaries, and make positive changes.
  • Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy: EMDR can help target traumatic memories by using eye movement techniques to help reprocess distressing memories and thoughts, which is proven to alleviate symptoms of PTSD.
  • Attachment-based therapy: Involves establishing a secure therapeutic dynamic between a client and therapist. This can help someone build their abilities to trust, communicate openly, regulate emotions, and cultivate positive self-belief.

With the right therapeutic relationship, you’ll likely start to feel more secure, seen, and hopeful about recovery.

Get Trauma-Informed Therapy for RAD Today

Therapy for reactive attachment disorder might feel like a daunting road. Many people entering therapy feel untrusting and unhopeful about their treatment. It’s not unusual to feel apprehensive about getting help, especially when the most important people in your life have let you down in the past. However, there is hope. 

At Mission Connection, we offer specialized trauma-focused therapy to help people who have gone through the most adverse experiences. Our team of professionals can create a customized care plan to meet your unique needs and support you in your attachment difficulties. 

Reach out today to discuss your concerns and any questions you might have about treatment. Together, we can work toward more fulfilling, safe relationships and a sense of self. 

Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) in Adults: Signs, Causes, and Therapy

References

  1. Ellis, E. E., & Saadabadi, A. (2023, May 1). Reactive attachment disorder. National Library of Medicine; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK537155/
  2. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (2018, May 25). Complex trauma. https://www.nctsn.org/what-is-child-trauma/trauma-types/complex-trauma
  3. Shevlin, M., Hyland, P., Roberts, N. P., Bisson, J. I., Brewin, C. R., & Cloitre, M. (2018). A psychometric assessment of disturbances in self-organization symptom indicators for ICD-11 complex PTSD using the International Trauma Questionnaire. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 9(1), 1419749. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2017.1419749
  4. Beaulieu, N., Brassard, A., Bergeron, S., & Péloquin, K. (2022). Why do you have sex and does it make you feel better? Integrating attachment theory, sexual motives, and sexual well-being in long-term couples. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 39(12), 026540752211087. https://doi.org/10.1177/02654075221108759
  5. Chursina, A. (2023). The impact of romantic attachment styles on jealousy in young adults. Psychology in Russia, 16(3), 222–232. https://doi.org/10.11621/pir.2023.0315