--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Studies say great harm can be done to a…" description: "\"Studies say great harm can be done to a person if the connection between mother and child isn´t there from the start. Love is a basic need/instinct, an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c7/anne-sewitsky-68602_basic-needs_studies-say-great-harm-can-be-done-to-a_2454005.jpg" --- # Studies say great harm can be done to a person if the… ![“Studies say great harm can be done to a person if the connection between mother and child isn´t there from the start. Love is a basic need/instinct, and people can get quite desperate and become destructive if they don´t have it.” quote by Anne Sewitsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c7/anne-sewitsky-68602_basic-needs_studies-say-great-harm-can-be-done-to-a_2454005.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c7/anne-sewitsky-68602_basic-needs_studies-say-great-harm-can-be-done-to-a_2454005.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c7/anne-sewitsky-68602_basic-needs_studies-say-great-harm-can-be-done-to-a_2454005.jpg) > “Studies say great harm can be done to a person if the connection between mother and child isn´t there from the start. Love is a basic need/instinct, and people can get quite desperate and become destructive if they don´t have it.” Anne Sewitsky ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A lack of early mother‑child bonding can cause deep emotional distress and harmful behavior later in life. **In simple terms:** Missing early motherly love harms emotional health. Key Takeaway Foster secure early attachments. Themes attachment development trauma needs Mood concerned empathetic Type advice psychological When to use this quote - parenting - childhood therapy - social work - education - mental health counseling Key Concepts psychology instinct desperation Questions to Reflect On - How can societies support mothers and alternative caregivers? - What early interventions reduce long‑term harm? A Different Perspective Not all children form bonds with mothers; other caregivers can also provide love. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Basic needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic-needs/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Connections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/connections/) [Desperate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperate/) [Harm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harm/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Mother and child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother-and-child/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes the father feels pushed out because of the connection between the mother and the child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/sometimes-the-father-feels-pushed-out-because-of-the-connection/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [The central icon of Catholic Christianity is mother and child. That motif is so deep in not just our human experience but in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-neelly-bellah/the-central-icon-of-catholic-christianity-is-mother-and-child-that/) [Robert Neelly Bellah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-neelly-bellah/) > [ “What is certain is that he \[the baby\] has too much attention from the one person who is entirely at his disposal. The intimacy… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germaine-greer/what-is-certain-is-that-he-the-baby-has-too-much-attention-from-the/) [Germaine Greer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germaine-greer/) > [There is a bond, it appears, between mother and child which endures as long as they do. It is independent of love; reason cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-deland/there-is-a-bond-it-appears-between-mother-and-child-which-endures-as/) [Margaret Deland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-deland/) > [“Even if Mary gives birth to a child who is not her husband's, if she has a shining pride, they become a holy mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osamu-dazai/even-if-mary-gives-birth-to-a-child-who-is-not-her-husband-s-if-she/) [Osamu Dazai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osamu-dazai/) > [A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/a-mother-s-love-for-her-child-is-like-nothing-else-in-the-world/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [We have an opportunity to focus global attention on what should be obvious: every mother, and every child, counts. They count because we value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-jong-wook/we-have-an-opportunity-to-focus-global-attention-on-what-should-be/) Lee Jong-wook > [Love is a bridge that links us heart to heart Mother and child can never live apart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maud-lindsay/love-is-a-bridge-that-links-us-heart-to-heart-mother-and-child-can/) [Maud Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maud-lindsay/) > [“remember love is all bull, the only true love is that between mother and child.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/remember-love-is-all-bull-the-only-true-love-is-that-between-mother/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [The moment a child is born, the mother is also born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-moment-a-child-is-born-the-mother-is-also-born/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“Carrying a child is a sacred thing. There is a bond established between mother and child in the womb that lasts forever. The truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-black/carrying-a-child-is-a-sacred-thing-there-is-a-bond-established/) [Daniel Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-black/) > [The tie which links mother and child is of such pure and immaculate strength as to be never violated, except by those whose feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/the-tie-which-links-mother-and-child-is-of-such-pure-and-immaculate-2/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Grown don't mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown? What's that supposed to mean? In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/grown-don-t-mean-nothing-to-a-mother-a-child-is-a-child-they-get-2/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [The tie which links mother and child is of such pure and immaculate strength as to be never violated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/the-tie-which-links-mother-and-child-is-of-such-pure-and-immaculate/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Being a mother means that your heart is no longer yours; it wanders wherever your children do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/being-a-mother-means-that-your-heart-is-no-longer-yours-it-wanders/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## More by Anne Sewitsky > [There is a huge amount of shame connected to the feeling of not being loved, because love and family, biological or not, confirms our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sewitsky/there-is-a-huge-amount-of-shame-connected-to-the-feeling-of-not-being/) Anne Sewitsky > [I don't know if it's a misconception, but I often get asked why I always make stories about family and love. Over the years,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sewitsky/i-don-t-know-if-it-s-a-misconception-but-i-often-get-asked-why-i/) Anne Sewitsky > [A lot of times, films tell stories about the time we live in. So when making history, it´s just as important to give the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sewitsky/a-lot-of-times-films-tell-stories-about-the-time-we-live-in-so-when/) Anne Sewitsky Explore all 4 Anne Sewitsky quotes ## More Basic needs quotes > [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/) Sheila Kamerman > [Well the real concept of basic needs if you cut it right down are simply the physical needs that are unavoidable for all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/well-the-real-concept-of-basic-needs-if-you-cut-it-right-down-are/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I have always believed that the ultimate purpose of economic policies and development policy is to meet the basic needs of our people. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manmohan-singh/i-have-always-believed-that-the-ultimate-purpose-of-economic-policies/) [Manmohan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manmohan-singh/) > [One of the concepts I was having trouble illustrating was the concept that administrative systems create narrow categories of gender and force people into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-spade/one-of-the-concepts-i-was-having-trouble-illustrating-was-the-concept/) [Dean Spade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-spade/) > [“Technology doesn’t change people’s basic needs or their natures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priya-ardis/technology-doesn-t-change-people-s-basic-needs-or-their-natures/) [Priya Ardis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priya-ardis/) > [I hope that if you are employed full-time, you are doing it to ensure that basic needs are met and not simply to indulge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/i-hope-that-if-you-are-employed-full-time-you-are-doing-it-to-ensure/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [We can build an economy that does not destroy its natural support systems, a global community where the basic needs of all the Earth's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/we-can-build-an-economy-that-does-not-destroy-its-natural-support/) [Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/) > [“Life and Abundance (The Sonnet) A person to take refuge in, a purpose to be driven by, that's all you need to lead a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/life-and-abundance-the-sonnet-a-person-to-take-refuge-in-a-purpose-to/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [Advanced industrialised economies like ourselves cannot afford to go on growing, particularly if we want to give people in poorer countries a chance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-lucas/advanced-industrialised-economies-like-ourselves-cannot-afford-to-go/) [Caroline Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-lucas/) > [He who has got more than that is required to fulfill his basic need spends his resources, more often than not, on the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anuj/he-who-has-got-more-than-that-is-required-to-fulfill-his-basic-need/) [Anuj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anuj/) > [The change in economic values created by the new markets for global public goods will reorient our global economy and under the right conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graciela-chichilnisky/the-change-in-economic-values-created-by-the-new-markets-for-global/) [Graciela Chichilnisky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graciela-chichilnisky/) > [Pay your utilities, gas and other basic needs before paying on your debts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-ramsey/pay-your-utilities-gas-and-other-basic-needs-before-paying-on-your/) [Dave Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-ramsey/) > [Your business should be defined, not in terms of the product or service you offer, but in terms of what customer need your product…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-blanchard/your-business-should-be-defined-not-in-terms-of-the-product-or/) [Ken Blanchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-blanchard/) > [Secrecy, censorship, dishonesty, and blocking of communication threaten all the basic needs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-maslow/secrecy-censorship-dishonesty-and-blocking-of-communication-threaten/) [Abraham Maslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-maslow/) > [The religious urge in man is not a mere passing phase in the history of his spiritual development, but the ultimate source of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-asad/the-religious-urge-in-man-is-not-a-mere-passing-phase-in-the-history/) [Muhammad Asad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-asad/) [Browse all 109 Basic needs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic-needs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Studies say great harm can be done to a person if the connection between mother and child isn´t there from the start. 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