Tags
Counseling, Domestic Violence, narcissistic abuse, Psychological Abuse, Psychopathology, Recovery from abuse, Relationship abuse, Relationship Counseling, Relationship Problems, Relationships, Verbal Abuse
Disclaimer: I have used the masculine gender to describe an abuser in the title of this post for ease of writing. Throughout this post I have referred to both sexes by using the plural personal pronouns, ‘they’ ‘them’ or ‘their’ in recognition of the reality that women are also capable of abusing their loved ones.
One of the most common questions I hear is, ‘How can someone hide an abusive personality?
The truth is, abusers are highly skilled at hiding their pathological personalities. If they weren’t, they’d never secure employment, gain friends or even negotiate the grocery store without risking a punch up. Normal people would never put up with an abuser’s ‘real self’.
Psychologists use the terms ‘real self’ and ‘ideal self’ when discussing the development of personality. The real self is easy to understand – it is comprised of our actual, manifest personality traits as well as all the aspects that make up our character. The ideal self is that to which we aspire. It’s our inner concept of who we really want to be; what we want to become as we mature. If the real self is too far removed from the ideal self, we experience discomfort within our psyches. We become disappointed in who we are, and how we behave towards others and the environment. If the gap between the real self and the ideal self is too wide, it can result in significant psychopathology.
Most of us are aware when we’re not being honest with ourselves, and subsequently take action to address the imbalance. For those with high levels of narcissistic traits however, the ego is too fragile to accept the disappointing image in the mirror, so they turn away from it in order to create a false self to present to the world. In turning away from their inner reality, they deny its’ existence. In brief, they detest what they see; don’t have the courage to face and overcome it; and so construct a false self that is not only different from their real self, but also extreme in its virtue, cleverness, and sense of importance. They overcompensate for self-hate by constructing this superior facade. The mask they wear is painted with virtues like understanding, compassion, intelligence, responsibility, reliability, humour, kindness and worldly achievements. They often (though not always) walk among us as the pillars of society and our most socially responsible high achievers. Frequently, they are known as generous, benevolent souls outside their intimate circle.
When we meet them, they come highly recommended. Their bosses, coworkers and friends sing their praises. What we don’t know is that they are mentally scanning the room for their latest target, desperate for a source of narcissistic supply. After all, they can’t feel good about themselves until they can make someone else look and feel bad. That someone needs to be empathetic, compassionate, responsible and reliable – all the traits the abuser lacks. Abusers resent their victims, who are everything the abuser wants to be. That resentment quickly escalates to intense hatred.
In the beginning, however, to hook the perfect target abusers need to be extremely careful not to let their masks slip. With an uncanny ‘nose’ for sniffing out potential sources of narcissistic supply, they can smell vulnerability the way a bloodhound tracks a scent. Through years of practice, they’ve become experts at discovering what makes you tick, what your hopes and dreams are, what you love and what you hate – the essence of who you are. They then have all the ammunition they need to hunt you down.
Where would you most like to travel to?’ ‘Really, the Netherlands? I can’t believe it – the Netherlands is next on my bucket list!
In this respect, abusers are chameleons. If you’re the unwitting victim, all you know is that suddenly you have met the one person in the world who understands you completely, who shares your hopes and dreams, and is aligned with your values. You can’t know that this person who is pursuing you so ardently is simply pretending to mirror your innermost thoughts, support your passions, love the same things you do and envision exactly the same ‘perfect’ future together. We don’t know we’ve been studied for a specific purpose and that our beloved is an expert at what he does. Dr Jekyll doesn’t have to think about becoming Mr Hyde. It happens as naturally as breathing.
During the wooing phase you’ll be ‘love-bombed’. That is, you’ll be pursued so passionately that before you know it, you’re addicted to this ‘love’. This phase is achieved by using the basic psychological principles of conditioning. You are relentlessly ‘rewarded’ at a rate that is not ‘normal’ in a normal population; and this creates an addictive emotional response within you. I will explain this process further in a subsequent post. For now, suffice to say that, once you’re successfully ‘addicted’ to abusers, then…and only then…will they drop their guard and reveal their real selves.
And you are in deep, deep water.
For an excellent and in-depth explanation of the complicated dynamics of abusive relationships, I highly recommend three books by Patrica Evans. I keep these books on my kindle and refer to them regularly. They have been extremely instrumental in my understanding and overcoming the effects of abuse. The book by Lundy Bancroft is often quoted as an extremely useful resource on numerous blogs on the topic of abuse. Click the images to take you to the Amazon store.
1highlysensitive1 said:
I found your blog in a comment you left me (From Chaos to Clarity)- its been a while since Ive been on the wordpress site- life just became too overwhelming. But I wanted to thank you for leaving a comment and your blog address. In the last 10 months since beginning therapy, I go thru emotional roller coasters where I just can’t … can’t do anything really. I am pretty much housebound by choice and am afraid to go back out into the real world because I cannot trust most people around me. I have found validation and compassion in blog posts like yours and I thank you for writing with insight the way that you do. It gives people like me hope to keep moving forward. Also, I want to congratulate you on posting a photo of yourself to your blog. You are much farther along in your recovery than I am because just the thought of the Narc’s in my life actually seeing my writing and reading my words is terrifying. I commend you for moving forward despite “what they will think” (<— thats the story of my life). But I know I will get there someday.
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Miss Min said:
I’m so terribly sorry I haven’t replied until now. WordPress seems to be letting me down with regard to new comments etc. I just decided to go through my site this evening and found your lovely, heartfelt message. Being housebound is exactly what I was for around 18 months. It was self-imposed isolation. I felt safer that way. I only interacted with my daughters and grandchildren … and with one dear friend. I thought I’d be like that for the rest of my life … but I’ve reached a point of healing … a point where I felt I’d quite like to step out and connect again. It’s been a blessed year, this past one. I’ve reconnected with precious friends from the past and decided to tentatively enter the dating scene. The online dating was so disappointing … and then, out of the blue, an old school friend contacted me. He’s right here with me in this room. The time I spent in therapy and educating myself about abuse has been incredibly fruitful. There are no ‘red flags’ in this man … NONE. Watch this space. I’m currently walking on air … and I hope and pray my new experience gives you hope and courage. Love and light.
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lookingthroughanotherseyes said:
Absolutely fantastic writing Miss Min, with words so true they send icy shivers down my spine making me recollect the emotionally damaging prison I escaped from. The situations I never dreamed I truly could ever escape from. But I did & here is to all the other’s that escaped too. This is the first piece of writing I have dared to read since the escape to freedom & what is has done is make me realise how proud I should be lol. I never thought I would want to return there in my head but it’s inspired me to maybe write about my journey to beautiful freedom. Thank you so much. Su x
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Miss Min said:
Hi Su!
I have only just come across your comments. I’m not sure what’s been happening with WordPress but I’m simply not getting all of my notifications, and I’ve been quite slack with my post-writing so I haven’t been here to check very often lately. I was just taking a hiatus because my health and energy couldn’t keep up and many days have been spent in bed over the past couple of months. I know you can relate.
Like you, I’ve been re-energizing myself with more creative pursuits. It certainly helps.
I understand how you’ve been reluctant to return to reading about this topic after you successfully escaped! I believe that’s possibly the real sub-conscious reason I’ve been reluctant to check in myself. Sometimes we just need to put some distance between ourselves and the pain; and that’s exactly what we should do for ourselves. Isn’t just amazing to feel so free?!!! When people ask me about that time, as happened recently when I caught up with a friend I hadn’t seen for forty years (!), I felt quite sick on one level, but so incredibly relieved on another. I often do the happy dance these days just for the sheer joy of living.
I’m proud of you too. You fought the beast…and you won. God bless you for that.
For now,
Love and light,
Melinda (I’m now unmasked.)
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Leah Griffith said:
Hi! I’ve nominated you for the ‘Once A Victim Now A Survivor’ award! You can choose to decline but if you’re interested details can be found through this link https://godlovesbrokenthings.wordpress.com/2015/07/14/once-a-victim-now-a-survivor-award/
I nominated you for this award because you’re absolutely amazing! It takes a really strong and brave woman to let her voice be heard and to speak out against abusive, toxic relationships. Please keep up the good work!
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Miss Min said:
You’re just a honey, Leah! What a lovely thing to do for me…and I consider it a privilege to reach out to others like us, who have been through, and continue to go through such incredible pain. You’re right – we’re darned strong. 🙂 I’ll pop on over to check out that link now…wishing you a blessed day. Thank you for motivating me further to keep speaking out. xxx
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