Erik Erikson's Eight Stages of Development

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me given my unfortunate circumstances as an infant. Sadly my mother was addicted to drugs and alcohol and was neglectful to my needs in many ways. I was in an abusive situation in which I was not being given proper nourishment and was subjected to physical abuse with frequent cigarette burns. Needless to say, the basic foundation started out pretty shaky and as I progressed it was almost like building a house of cards in many ways.
In Erickson’s second stage, Learning Autonomy vs. Shame (18 months to about 3), the well parented child emerges sure of itself and elated with new found self control. By the time I was old enough for this stage my father had sole custody of me yet I remained shy and timid with many insecurities. I was almost four before I completely potty trained.
The third stage, Learning Initiative vs. Guilt (3 to 5), is what Erikson referred to as the “play age”. In this stage the healthy child learns to imagine, fantasize, cooperate with others, and leads as ...

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