After another heated argument with your partner about the same issue, you know deep down that there is something wrong with this person.
You don’t want to be accused of overreacting, so you hesitate to call what they’re doing emotional abuse or allow yourself to think they might be narcissistic.
Related: The Obvious Sign Of A Narcissistic Father You Probably Feel Too Guilty To Notice
Here are 9 signs of narcissistic abuse, explained by one therapist:
- Your partner lacks empathy and is extremely selfish.
If your partner habitually ignores your needs and feelings, there’s a good chance he doesn’t care about you because his only real goal in life is to know what other people can do for him.
Low empathy goes hand in hand with the ability to use others for personal gain. If being kind and generous towards you results in some benefit for them, they will do so.
This contradictory behavior undoubtedly leaves you puzzled because you realize that they know how to act but deliberately choose not to.
- Your partner is conceited and arrogant.
If your partner expects to be viewed and treated as superior – with or without achievements to back that up – it is very likely that something is not right. They may exaggerate their accomplishments or even completely fabricate their hero stories.
Interestingly, they may seek out other people who they believe are equally exceptional because anything less would be unworthy of them and all their self-aggrandizing superiority, while seething with resentment toward them.
- Your partner has an insatiable need for approval and adoration.
If you’ve noticed a pattern in your partner of needing you to constantly stroke their ego and tell them they’re geniuses, a hot smoker, and more talented than everyone else at everything, it’s probably got you wondering. Can you remember this ego boost for longer than 20 minutes before you need another compliment?
They may also focus on delusions of power, status, authority, intellect, and other qualities that are externally focused on because they need to feed the need for importance.
- Your partner asserts his power and dominance.
Narcissists have a fragile sense of self, and because of these deep-rooted feelings of vulnerability, they overcompensate by being obsessed with power and control.
They often seek jobs and relationships where they are in a position of power, where they can justifiably force others to do things their way or influence situations to reinforce their constant need to prove their self-importance.
Unfortunately, they may seek out strong partners and enjoy the challenge of breaking them.
Related: 5 Stages Of A Narcissistic Relationship
- Your partner has an exaggerated sense of entitlement.
Does your partner demand and expect that they deserve immediate, automatic compliance without question? Do they feel insulted if they consider life difficult as if they are owed something special? Do they feel entitled to respect, love, and compassion but do not feel a responsibility to extend the same courtesy to others?
If this is the case, this is not just a bad attitude, it is an attitude that has turned into malicious behavior.
- Your partner feels resentful and envious of other people’s success.
This comes along with their entitled outlook on life. They may see someone else’s achievement as a threat to their superiority and feel competitive toward them. They are often petty, childish, and jealous because they see people as competitors.
Because of this wrong mindset, they also believe that others are jealous of them.
- Votre partenaire est vindicatif, agressif et maussade.
Lorsque les individus éprouvent du ressentiment et ont un développement émotionnel immature, ils ont tendance à se comporter selon des schémas d’imprévisibilité. Comme Jekyll et Hyde, leur comportement oscille largement (et rapidement) entre normal et carrément répréhensible.
Ils sont souvent passifs-agressifs, maussades, se plaignent, se considèrent comme des victimes, sont préoccupés par le complot et la vengeance des autres et aiment la critique.
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