Relationships with narcissists can destroy your mental and emotional wellbeing.
Sometimes, even the strongest of us can become victims of abusive and toxic partners. When you are in a relationship with someone, you allow yourself to be vulnerable and you trust that your partner would never do anything to hurt you. However, being vulnerable in a relationship with a narcissist can leave you questioning reality, losing your confidence, and feeling worthless.
These are the five ways a narcissist’s abuse can destroy you, even if you are strong:
1. Your confidence diminishes
Narcissists believe that they are superior in every way. Subsequently, this means that they view you as inferior, and eventually, you begin to believe that you are. In addition to this, they tend to manipulate and use flattery to get their way. In other words, they often praise you when they want something only to tear you down after they achieve their goal.
2. You become anxious
Narcissistic people are often unstable and unpredictable; as a result, you will find yourself constantly walking on eggshells around them, questioning how they will react next. This is stressful, exhausting, and harmful to your mental and emotional wellbeing.
3. You blame yourself
Frequently, you will be blamed and made to feel guilty – even when you have not done anything wrong. Narcissists often deflect blame away from themselves and onto others as they rarely admit that they are wrong. Constantly feeling as though you are in the wrong will have you feeling as though you are a bad person.
4. You begin to question reality
Gaslighting and abuse will leave you feeling confused as narcissists lie, manipulate, and twist reality to suit them. In addition to this, you will wonder how you find yourself in your current position as at the beginning of the relationship, the narcissist was charming, kind-hearted, and generous.
5. You feel worthless
Narcissists tend to fuel their feelings of superiority by tearing you down. In order to do this, they mock your achievements, diminish your self-worth, and make you feel like you are not good enough. In doing so, they make themselves feel more powerful than you. Unsurprisingly, hearing a person you trust and love constantly criticize and tear you down will make you feel worthless.
No matter how much you love your partner, you need to love yourself more. If your relationship makes you feel like you are a worthless and horrible person then it might mean that you are the victim of abuse and gaslighting. Narcissists can destroy you in the most subtle ways, making you wonder what happened and how you ended up where you are.