Narcissistic abuse refers to the physical and mental harm imposed by severely self-centred people. These individuals desire admiration from others and think highly of themselves.
From the beginning, narcissists are charming, but later on, they become manipulating and demanding. They will do everything to make people in their surroundings feel anxious, neglected, unworthy to love, and guilt-tripped.
Narcissists actually intentionally abuse others by telling them that they are somehow emotionally, socially, and intellectually inferior. Their behaviour can be extreme in many cases, as they are such skilful manipulators, managing to make it seem as though the victim is the actual abuser. When they are caught or confronted about their abusing behaviour, they will begin to play the victim.
The targets for narcissists are compassionate and empathic individuals. However, as a result of emotional manipulation, denial, and self-victimization, this type of abuse is difficult to spot. People who are constantly abused by narcissists tend to believe a distorted version of reality as they are constantly lied to and manipulated. They tend to be sceptical about everything and find it hard to trust others as they have been conditioned to do so by their abuser.
It has been scientifically proven that repeated and long-term abuse can damage not only memory but also the thinking and learning ability.
Narcissistic abuse acts like traumatic stress and can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Studies suggest that long-term traumatic stress affects three major parts of the brain. Continuous stress due to abuse can damage the brain cells, making it gradually shrink in size. As a result, the person starts to forget things easily and finds it difficult to learn new stuff. People suffering from narcissistic abuse also find it difficult to make decisions and tend to have a shorter attention span. They also tend to be depressed, suffer from increased anxiety, mood disorders and present with a lack of self-care.
The best way to stop narcissistic abuse is to end the relationship with the abuser or simply stay away from them.
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Author – Kate Bailey – Hill
