People who lacked emotional engagement in childhood, men and women alike, often can’t believe that someone would want to have a relationship with the… - Lindsay C. Gibson

Empathy is what makes people feel safe in relationships. Along with self-awareness, it's the soul of emotional intelligence, guiding people toward prosocial behavior and fairness in dealings with others. In contrast, nonempathic people overlook your feelings and don't seem to imagine your experience or be sensitive to it. It's important to be aware of this, because a person who isn't responsive to your feelings won't be emotionally safe when the two of you have any kind of disagreement.

Remember, you can’t expect immature, emotionally phobic people to be different from how they are.

They act as though being a parent exempts them from respecting boundaries or being considerate.