Gaslighting

[CrazyinVA]

I know the concept of "gaslighting" has come up here before, and I just came across this article that I found to be a great explanation of it. There's also a link at the end to another article about emotional abuse, which many of us can also relate to, I think. So many of us have been there with our Difficult Adult Children.

http://lonerwolf.com/gaslighting/

P.S. there's an annoying pop-up at first, but just click the x to get out of it and it doesn't come back.

 

[recoveringenabler]

Great article CrazyinVa. Thanks for posting it.

 

[SheSails]

Wow. I hadn't considered that I'd let myself become the victim... again. And this time it's my daughter, not my husband. There's a lot to consider here. Thanks.

 

[Scent of Cedar *]

"Gaslighting, at its core, is a form of emotional abuse that slowly eats away at your ability to make judgements."

I have never heard a better or more helpful description of this term ~ of how it does what it does, and of how we are affected. Just to read this line is a beginning place to reclaim ourselves.

***

"This is often done by making you feel “overly sensitive,” “paranoid,” “mentally unstable,” “silly,” “unhinged,” and many other sensations which cause you to doubt yourself."

Leafy, I hope you are reading this. They taught you that you were too sensitive.
I thought about you when I read these sentences:

"n a family scenario: Andrew’s father is an angry, bitter man. Every day Andrew is afraid to “tip the balance” of his father’s mood because he often bursts out in fits of rage calling Andrew a “bastard” and a “worthless little loser,” among many other hurtful names. When Andrew confronts his father about this aggressive name calling, Andrew’s father laughs and tells him “to stop being so sensitive.”

And I am thinking about me too, when I read those sentences.

This article was stellar, CrazyinVirginia. I am so glad I read it.

Thank you.

Cedar

 

[New Leaf]

Leafy, I hope you are reading this. They taught you that you were too sensitive.
I thought about you when I read these sentences:

Thank you Cedar, yes I have been reading along. I can see how this is so. I was not too sensitive, I was reacting as would any child would to hurtful things. I still believe I am a highly sensitive person, lol (sorry!). But, I do not see it as a fault, rather a gift that allows me to imagine and create.
Thank you for the article, CrazyinVa. Gaslighting is a terrible thing to endure. Crazy making, for sure. It is important to learn about it and recognize it when it occurs, then get the heck out of Dodge! Nobody deserves to be mistreated in this way........
Welcome back Cedar, I have missed you.

(((HUGS)))
leafy