Updated 7/2/25
Reactive attachment disorder in adults often happens when it isn’t treated during childhood.
Also referred to as RAD, this is a serious disorder where a child is unable to form strong attachments with their primary caregiver. People with RAD may display signs of detachment, withdrawal, difficulty keeping relationships, lack of affectionate expression, control issues, anger outbursts, impulsiveness, and distrustfulness.
These signs are bad enough for a child. RAD in adults can drastically impact one’s ability to have meaningful connections and can result in mental health problems and drug abuse.
The good news is this: Treatment for a RAD diagnosis, in combination with substance use disorders, is accessible and highly successful when combined with the right therapy and support. Obtaining assistance may lead to an improved quality of life and more contentment.
What is Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults?
Reactive attachment disorder in adults is a behavioral disorder that can be carried on from childhood. Basically, if RAD isn’t treated during childhood, it can last into the adult years. But what is reactive attachment disorder?
Reactive attachment disorder is a condition where a child is unable to establish a healthy attachment with their parent or primary caretaker. Children with RAD have been so disrupted in early life that their future relationships are also impaired. They may experience difficulty relating to others and are often developmentally delayed.
Reactive attachment disorder is common in children who have been abused, bounced around in foster care, lived in orphanages, or taken away from their primary caregiver after establishing a bond. Although reactive attachment disorder is known as a childhood disorder, RAD can have drastic effects in adulthood.
If the signs and symptoms of RAD are untreated in childhood, there is potential for negative behaviors associated with RAD to be carried into adulthood. Additionally, adults who have children with RAD often experience a whole spectrum of lifestyle stressors because of their child’s disorder.
Is Reactive Attachment Disorder an Autism Spectrum Disorder?
No. While autism spectrum disorders affect how a person communicates and relates to others, their roots aren’t thought to be the same as RAD. RAD often develops after a child experiences neglect and abuse.
Conditions like RAD are diagnosed very carefully. Before a child (or adult) receives a RAD diagnosis, a doctor will be very careful to rule out any other potential conditions, including autism spectrum disorders.
What Are the Symptoms of Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults?
The symptoms of reactive attachment disorder in adults can be significant and can interfere with the individual’s ability to fully experience relationships, have a positive sense of self and the individual’s mental health. Here are some signs that an adult has RAD:
- Detachment
- Withdrawal from connections
- Inability to maintain significant relationships, romantic or platonic
- Inability to show affection
- Resistance to receiving love
- Control issues
- Anger problems
- Impulsivity
- Distrustful
- Inability to fully grasp emotions
- Feelings of emptiness
- Lack of sense of belonging
RAD and Adult Relationships
Reactive attachment disorder in adults can be significant and can carry into every aspect of one’s life that involves a relationship with others.
Whether it is professional relationships with coworkers, platonic relationships with best friends, or romantic relationships with an intimate partner, RAD in adults causes adult individuals to have the inability to fully experience relationships because they do not have a positive sense of self. In addition, their overall mental health could be compromised.
As a result, they often have dysfunctional thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, which can carry out into their relationships with others.
Individuals with RAD will often struggle in relationships because of the following:
- They have little emotional investment in others.
- They are reluctant to share their feelings with others.
- They avoid physical intimacy.
- They lack empathy.
Of course, not every adult with RAD carries these behavioral patterns into relationships, but for many, these personality traits can be detrimental to their professional and personal growth.
Additionally, adults with RAD may feel the need to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol, which can become a downward spiral into addiction, creating more turmoil in their lives.
Can Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults be Treated?
Yes. Treatment for reactive attachment disorder in adults looks much like RAD does in children. Fortunately, it is highly treatable with the right kind of therapy and treatment.
However, it’s common for RAD in adults to be accompanied by substance use disorder. If these co-occurring disorders exist, it is important to seek help for both simultaneously, as one disorder can feed the other.
How is Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults Treated?
Like other mental health disorders, there isn’t a set treatment for RAD. Treatment tends to be extremely personalized, addressing an individual’s particular needs.
That said, there are many effective ways to treat RAD in adults. At Discovery Mood & Anxiety, we make extensive use of talk therapy to help our clients struggling with RAD master their emotions and find genuine, lasting connections with others.
Two forms of talk therapy we use include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT helps people regulate their emotions. Operating on the principle that a person’s emotions and thoughts are directly related to their behavior, CBT helps people recognize negative thought patterns and develop healthy coping skills.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): If DBT sounds similar to CBT, it is: DBT is based on the same principles. Where DBT is different, however, is how it approaches emotions. DBT helps people deal with distress, improve their relationships, and regulate their emotions.
If you think you or someone you know is struggling with RAD, there’s hope – RAD is a treatable condition, and a happier life can be yours.
Struggling With Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults? Reach Out Today
Fewer mental health disorders are as isolating as RAD. Worse, this condition often occurs after experiencing intense abuse and neglect. Often misunderstood by others, a person can struggle with RAD for decades before finding relief.
Treatment for RAD at Discovery Mood & Anxiety isn’t just about treating your symptoms. It’s about helping you find real, lasting connections with others. We have over 25 years of experience treating people with symptoms of RAD and co-occurring conditions. When you’re with us, you’re never alone in your journey to well-being.
Contact us today to speak confidentially with one of our caring admissions counselors. You can also have your insurance verified – we approve 99.5% of people who contact us who have commercial insurance. Discover how you’ve always had the power within yourself to overcome life’s challenges.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Reactive Attachment Disorder in Adults?
Reactive attachment disorder in adults occurs when reactive attachment disorder, a condition that is often associated with children, isn’t treated until a person is an adult.
What is Reactive Attachment Disorder?
Reactive attachment disorder, or RAD, is a condition that prevents a child from forming healthy emotional bonds with their parents or other caretakers.
What are the Symptoms of Reactive Attachment Disorder?
A child (or adult) with RAD has trouble managing their emotions and struggles with forming connections with others. A child with RAD can seem afraid of their caregivers when there’s no reason to be so and often avoids seeking comfort.
What Causes Reactive Attachment Disorder?
RAD is often caused by neglect and/or abuse in childhood. RAD can be caused by spending time in an institution like an orphanage, experiencing traumatic losses, having many different authority figures, or losing a caretaker after bonding with them.
Is Reactive Attachment Disorder a form of Autism?
No. While RAD superficially resembles autism in some ways, its causes are very different, based on neglect and abuse.
Struggling With Your Mental Health?
You’re not alone. Reactive attachment disorder and other issues leave people feeling alone and misunderstood. Our FREE online mental health support groups offer you support and connection with others who know your struggles. Reach out to us today to learn more.