This Is The Reason Why Relationships Between Empaths And Narcissists Usually Fail
When an empath and someone who lacks empathy end up in a romantic relationship, they’re setting themselves up for a big disappointment.
Narcissists and empaths have nothing in common. And while some are of the mind that opposites attract, the reality is, if two people differ to the extremes, there is no way they can be joined in a healthy romantic union.
In a piece for the Business Insider, senior reporter Lindsay Dodgson wrote:
“Empaths are ’emotional sponges,’ who can absorb feelings from other people very easily. This makes them them very attractive to narcissists, because they see someone who will fulfill their every need in a selfless way.”
Narcissists are emotionally damaged people who keep reigniting their pain by causing harm to those around them.
And because the empath is a healer by nature, they will do everything in their power to soothe the narcissist’s pain – even if their help wasn’t requested.
Empaths can see the pain behind the narcissist’s mask, and that is why they keep on forgiving and trying to help them.
But it is crucial to know that a person cannot change no matter how much help they receive unless they are willing to do the necessary work on themselves. And sadly, most narcissists refuse to do so.
According to Psychology Today,
“Narcissists create relationships with [empaths] that essentially allows them to feed off the kindness of the empath, to satisfy their insatiable appetite for praise, attention, admiration, power and material things until the [empath] is left emotionally drained, exhausted and powerless.”
And this is the reason most empaths find it hard to leave their toxic partners behind.
According to Judith Orloff MD, psychiatrist and author of The Empath’s Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People, Thriving as an Empath, and Emotional Freedom,
“What narcissists see in empaths is a giving, loving person who is going to try and be devoted to you and love you and listen to you. But unfortunately empaths are attracted to narcissists, because at first this is about a false self. Narcissists present a false self, where they can seem charming and intelligent, and even giving, until you don’t do things their way, and then they get cold, withholding and punishing.”
When being subjected to manipulative tactics, the empath may start wondering whether they’re just imagining it, or what they could do to combat the situation.
But sadly, empaths rarely come to the realization that many things are out of their control to fix. And not being able to fix a narcissist’s behavior is one of them.
Everything the narcissist does, they do for their own selfish purposes, and they only see those around them as tools that can help them reach what they desire.
Being kind and honest people themselves, empaths naturally expect others to act the same way. But once an empath encounters a narcissist for the first time, they come to understand some harsh truths about the fabric of reality.
Their toxic relationship with the narcissist eventually exhausts them, and when they are not given the proper means to recharge their batteries, they realize that there is simply no other option but to cut ties with the narcissist.
Those two opposites can never build a long-lasting relationship because they can simply never achieve a state of balance.
And for the empaths who are thinking of leaving, know this: You are much stronger than you give yourself credit for and you should never settle for a relationship in which you are only giving but never receiving!
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