attachment figure
An attachment figure is an external dependency custom-designed for depositing one’s loans of anxiety and loneliness. It promises unconditional security yet acts as a convenient scapegoat whose mood swings send your emotional stock soaring or crashing. It serves as your self-esteem thermometer, its gaze alone capable of shattering your umbrella of self-worth. The longer the relationship, the more dependency and demands snowball into a leading role in your personal quagmire.