You’ve been living in a state of madness. Your partner seems to randomly attack you or give you the silent treatment, then say you’re to blame.

Your finances are a mess, and you’re responsible for it, too — even if you’re the only one working. You are sure this person is cheating on you, but he insists that you are paranoid and delusional.

Or, in a variation on the topic: You live with the distinct feeling that something is wrong, even though you can’t quite figure out what it is.

You can Google terms like “emotional abuse,” “signs of cheating,” or “love and cheating.” Eventually, you’ll come across terms like “sociopath,” “narcissist,” and “personality disorder.”

Suddenly, everything made sense. Other people tell stories just like yours.

You realize that you are involved with a sociopath.

You’re terrified – this personality disorder sounds so bad there’s no cure for it.

But you also feel relieved because you now know you’re not crazy. He is your partner.

So what do you do with information that your partner may be a sociopath?

First, here’s what not to do: Don’t confront the sociopath!

Even though you want to say: “I know what you are!!!”

Even though you want to defend yourself and say: “It’s not me!!! It’s you!!!”

Do not do it!

Now that you know what you’re dealing with, keep the information to yourself and carefully plan what you’ll do next.

Here are 4 things you should do when you find out that your partner is a sociopath.

Be wary of the sociopath’s reaction.

What sociopaths are all about is power and control.

If you tell the person that you found out that everything they told you was a lie, and everything they did was manipulation, the sociopath will feel a loss of power and control over you.

A sociopath will likely react in one of the following ways…

Love Bombing: They will turn on the charm or ask for another chance, making you doubt yourself and dragging you back into their web.

Anger: They will get angry and intensify the abuse.

Abandonment: They will leave suddenly, causing as much damage to you as possible while they are out.

Any of these reactions by a sociopath will likely make your situation more difficult.

So, even though you know the truth now, act it out. Pretend everything is the same, while you evaluate how deceptive and exploitative the sociopath is.

Find out how you will remove yourself from the engagement to better protect your safety, health, finances and reputation.

Do not trust the sociopath’s family.

Here’s another thing you shouldn’t do: Don’t confide in the sociopath’s family.

This disorder is highly hereditary, so it is very likely that the sociopath’s parents, siblings, or other relatives have this disorder as well. If so, they will side with the sociopath to help them control you.

Or the family may be ignorant. Some family members – especially if they don’t see the sociopath very often – may have no idea at all about their true personality.

If the sociopath begins to play the victim, he or she may buy into that role and do everything he can to help the sociopath, not you.

Or perhaps the family knows from the beginning that this sociopath is up to no good and wants you to take the problem off their hands.

They don’t want to deal with the disorder again, so they may sabotage your efforts to escape.

Be careful when talking with friends.

Don’t pass your suspicions on to any friends who are also friends of the sociopath. Sociopaths engage in “impression management.”

Just as a sociopath has been able to charm you for a long time, he can also charm others. Therefore, people who know a sociopath may have a hard time believing what you are saying.

This is especially true if the sociopath has already launched a smear campaign against you.

Long before you have any idea what’s going on, the sociopath may have begun laying the groundwork to discredit you. They may have made up stories about your behavior or “believed” that you were “mentally unstable.”

The sociopath may have subtly turned people against you. So, if you start talking about what really happened in your life, they are willing to not believe you.

In fact, you should also be careful about talking to your friends.

The sociopath may contact them behind your back and convincingly express their concern about you. They may ask you where you are or what you do.

What the sociopath really wants is information. Your friends may fall for the scam — after all, you did it — and tell the sociopath something that could jeopardize your escape plans.

Be aware that people don’t understand.

Keep in mind that most people simply do not understand the meaning of the words “sociopath” and “psychopath.” Most people think they are serial killers.

If you say you’re involved with a sociopath and that person doesn’t look like a murderer, others may think you’re exaggerating.

So, even if you are motivated to confront the sociopath and want to tell the world that he or she is a liar, a manipulator, and a manipulator, it is best to be very careful about sharing information.

Stay silent, at least at first, until you know who you can really trust.

So what do you do with information that your partner may be a sociopath?

Here are 4 things you should do when you find out that your partner is a sociopath.

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