We use the term “Daddy issues” lightly. We most commonly refer to it when talking about a girl who, to say it nicely, gets around. It is a commonality that we all know and we all learned sometime in high school, but I believe the term “Daddy issues” shouldn’t be used as a derogatory term to describe a girl who sleeps around. Instead, we need to educate ourselves on the real meaning behind the term, and how hurtful it can be when it is used to describe that girl who hooked up with your ex-boyfriend last weekend without knowing you were involved with him at all.
Most people realize that the absence of a parent can have lasting effects on that child’s personality, and can completely change their way of living life. There are young boys who grow up without a mother who may not treat a girl how she deserves to be treated. There are young girls who grow up without a father who rely on men their entire life to make up for the lack of a father figure. We label these young girls and boys as sad, lonely people, and notice their flaws when it comes to relationships and other issues. We all know a girl who brings a different guy home every night of the weekend and we talk about her, often referring to her as a girl with “Daddy issues.” What we don’t realize is that there are often serious underlying problems, such as depression, body image issues, and the strong need for attention from others that go hand-in-hand with her tendencies.
It is important to have a tolerance for others and recognize serious problems rather than just casually gossip about them to your friends. “Daddy issues” are serious problems that we may not think of as anything but a silly label. However, they are so much more than that. They tends to begin with someone’s intense desire for attention to make up for the lack of it at home, so they find boys to have meaningless relationships with in order to fill the void, but it can spiral into something much more dangerous. We all know the different problems associated with “sleeping around.” In college, it can result in failing classes and becoming incredibly overwhelmed with everything. It can result in contracting an STD from an unknown partner. It can ruin someone’s life. This is why we must educate ourselves on the dangers someone may face with having “Daddy issues,” and give them support, love, and the attention that might satisfy them.
So the next time we refer to a girl that we are mad at for flirting with a boy we like, we need to remember that there is so much more to the story. There are underlying issues that we may never understand, but it is crucial to try. This could be saving someone from a lifetime of the problems associated with having “Daddy issues.”
