Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)
People who suffer from Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) regularly inflict narcissistic abuse on their victims. Sometimes it’s so subtle, we don’t even recognize it. This is a pattern of behavior, it’s not a one-off. These people are not having a bad day, they suffer from a Cluster B personality disorder. They are disordered. So when you find yourself walking on eggshells to avoid their triggers because you know what happens when…
What you’re experiencing is narcissistic abuse.
Narcissistic Abuse
Narcissistic abuse is based on power and control. People who suffer from NPD need to have both. Narcissists are known to wear a mask. That is, they behave one way in public and another behind closed doors. They save their abusive behavior for those closest to them in private. Narcissistic behaviors are self-serving but self-serving behaviors do not have to be abusive.
Relationship abuse is fundamentally about control, whether it is physical, sexual, digital, financial, or emotional. Abuse has a pattern that enables one partner to have more power and control in the relationship than the other.
What does narcissistic abuse involve?
Narcissistic abuse is a kind of emotional abuse. Typically it involves criticism, put-downs, accusations and possibly threats. People with NPD use gaslighting to make you question your reality. They withhold money, affection, intimacy and give the silent treatment. The goal of the narcissist is to control their victims and keep them for narcissistic supply.
It's difficult to recognize
I know how hard narcissistic abuse is to recognize. I had no idea what was happening. I began to put the pieces together slowly. First, I noticed an overt lack of empathy, like a complete inability to exhibit empathy at all. Then the gaslighting began. Nothing was as it seemed. The constant criticism, belittling, manipulation. I felt completely alone. If you feel this way too, please know it’s possible to find yourself again and heal with support, coaching and time.
I wrote about this in my book “Wrecking Ball Relationships: How to Identify, Live With or Leave the Narcissist in Your Life.”
“Beth’s road with her narcissist was a difficult one. She suffered from both severe emotional and physical abuse at the hands of her husband. As a result, she developed severe anxiety, severe depression, and complex post-traumatic stress disorder. The only way for Beth to cope was to take prescription drugs. The medication numbed Beth making it difficult to function as a human being. Over the years, she wanted nothing to do with him. She didn’t even want to hear him breathe.”
People who’ve never experienced this pattern of emotional abuse don’t understand the toll it takes on our physical, mental, and emotional selves. We’ve spent years, perhaps an entire lifetime walking on eggshells afraid of upsetting the narcissist.
If you are in fear of physical abuse, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or the National Dating Abuse Helpline at 866-331-9474.
If you’ve suffered narcissistic abuse, it’s critical for you to talk to someone. However, it’s important to talk to someone who gets it. I believe that in this particular form of abuse, it’s best to talk to someone who’s had a similar experience. I have experienced this insidious emotional abuse.
I can help you.
One of the best gifts you can give yourself is to learn the benchmarks of healthy relationships. I can help you learn how to resist your attraction to toxic people.
You are the most important project you’ll ever work on. It’s time to invest in yourself the way you’ve invest in everyone else. Let’s start now.
I’ve had discovery calls with so many people who need help with this type of toxic relationship and resulting abuse but have been decimated financially. They have been left with little to recover and begin to heal. I’ve developed courses that take away the financial obstacles of working with a narcissistic abuse recovery coach one-on-one while still giving you the clarity, validation, and strategies to begin your recovery. Both courses are value-packed, self-driven, videos on demand to get you on the right path.
I’d love to speak with you. Click here to book a free session with me.
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You can find my book “Wrecking Ball Relationships” on Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com, and lynncatalano.com.
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