You’ve read all the signs. You are unhappy. Is this relationship worth keeping? It’s tough to change an unhealthy relationship. It can take years with a good therapist, a 12-step recovery program, or a dedication to spiritual retreats. But most importantly both people must be committed to this change. And if you are with a narcissist, unfortunately, the relationship is doomed to fail because narcissists do not think they have a problem. A leopard cannot change its spots and a narcissist is not unlike the leopard. To gain insight, take the time to educate yourself on narcissism. Also, note th ..read more

Manufactured Soul Mate — It was all a lie There are three stages in a relationship with a narcissist: Idealize, Devalue, and Discard. This article will describe in detail the Idealization phase, also known as Love Bombing. The narcissist will employ a few tactics to hook you in, and guess what? They truly work on unsuspecting people. This is because it quickly makes you happy and stops you from thinking, thereby accepting risks. As Jackson MacKenzie writes in Psychopath Free, it can modify “your brain chemicals to become addicted to the pleasure centers firing away. ” Perhaps most insidio ..read more

It is painfully difficult for victims to describe the insidiousness of the narcissistic abuse they experienced. I am writing this for the family and friends of survivors of psychological abuse. Why? Because I hear from many survivors who say that it is incredibly hard for them to describe the insidiousness of the abuse they experienced and many family and friends just don’t know how to support their loved one through the steps of recovery. There is so much to be said on this topic but I am going to try and just hit the highlights. For those who aren’t familiar with me, I am a Licensed Clinic ..read more

Three distinct, often overlapping, stages of a narcissistic relationship. So, you are wondering what the hell happened, aren’t you? You thought you had met your soul mate and you were the luckiest person in the world. Of course, in Phase 1 (idealize) you weren’t questioning your relationship. But like a switch going off, everything changed. Even if you can’t put your finger on it, something went very wrong. You entered Phase 2, and for a while, you just chalked it up to them having a bad day, or maybe they are sick, maybe they have a brain tumor, or they’re having a nervous breakdown. It too ..read more

The silent treatment is a brutal form of abuse—one that pins you against your own mind. You declare war on your intuition and everything you know to be true. Once your identity has been sufficiently eroded, the psychopath can use this final technique without any chance that you’ll leave them. Instead, you will torture yourself, carrying out the remainder of the abuse for them. They will leave you alone with your thoughts, planting subtle hints and suggestions over social networking to encourage your paranoia. You will run through everything you’ve done in the relationship, blaming yourself f ..read more

What is cPTSD? cPTSD is Complex Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. Most of us have heard about PTSD and we know that soldiers come back from war with a degree of this. But PTSD and cPTSD are not only reserved for people of war. People who experience a traumatic accident or an earthquake can experience PTSD. People with repeated trauma such as emotional abuse, sexual abuse, and childhood traumas are likely to experience symptoms of cPTSD. cPTSD is much like PTSD but with additional symptoms that are often misdiagnosed as something else. Complex PTSD is a mental health condition that can devel ..read more

From the Book Psychopath Free by Jackson MacKenzie Relationships are not easy, but they should never make you feel bad. The downfall of a toxic unhealthy relationship is that we would never have agreed to be in one had it not been so nice at first. And there will be many times when an unhealthy relationship is fun, enjoyable, and lively. That does not mean you should accept all the negativity that is pointed in your direction. The good times are what make it so hard to leave a narcissist… like the gambler who wants to put just one more coin in the slot machine, we keep sticking around for t ..read more

Your partner  (lover, husband, friend, parent, coworker) seems genuine. They are not mean and hurtful all of the time, because of course, if they were, you’d never be with them in the first place, and you would have left a long long time ago. No,... The post Are Sociopaths Cold-Blooded Planners? appeared first on Narcissist Free ..read more

Monday mornings hit me really hard. That is the day I send my only child off to school and don’t get to see him until 54 hours later. That’s the rest of the day Monday, all day on Tuesday and mid-day on Wednesday. And then,... The post Why I Still Cry When My Son Goes Off to His Dad’s for the Weekend. appeared first on Narcissist Free ..read more

I was just 19 when I met my husband…He was 23, handsome, charming, a catch I thought. We weren’t looking to have a serious relationship but it soon developed into that. He took it upon himself to help me study so that I could get... The post I Did Not Realize I Was in an Abusive Relationship appeared first on Narcissist Free ..read more