Anxiety is one of the most common mental disorders, however, in most cases, specialists do not view it as a mental illness, but rather as a coded reaction in us that helps us to detect and manage the threats. It is anxiety that has allowed humanity to survive in the most hostile and unpredictable environments.
Nowadays, anxiety is considered an inexplicable feeling of unease and worry. How do we explain the fact that we are still affected by this state of psychic disorder when we live in an environment very different from that of our ancestors?
Much of the literature links current anxiety disorders to a form of emotional and emotional abuse experienced during childhood. It has been found that early life stress has a profound effect on the central nervous system and that the same effect can occur in adults.
According to a study by Erika Lawrence, a doctor of psychology, it has been established that psychological abuse is as harmful as physical violence. His study concluded that psychological victimization can have more harmful consequences than physical victimization.
Children who have been victims of emotional abuse do not necessarily develop anxiety in their lives. However, experiencing traumatic events as the brain develops causes a disorder of neuroendocrine responses to stress. This means that any additional stress caused by mental or physical abuse carries a high risk of triggering psychological disorders such as anxiety and severe depression.
What is narcissistic abuse?
Narcissists apply a principle based on their own feelings and pain that they project on a victim.
A narcissist seems to admire himself, while maintaining a deeply flawed internal dialogue where he constantly feels a gap between the personality he hides in him and the facade he shows to the world.
To feel better about his psychological deficiencies, the narcissist manifests destructive defense mechanisms to harm those who care for him, destroys relationships, and intentionally inflicts deep psychological wounds.
Some forms of narcissistic violence include:
- Manipulation - influence behavior indirectly
- Verbal abuse - belittle, humiliate, blame
- Gaslighting - introduce doubt about the perception of reality
- Sabotage - intentionally intervening to cause disruption
- Exploitation - profit for personal gain
- Objectivation - degrading and inhuman eyes
- Isolation - cut off access to a support network
Narcissistic abuse is one of the most harmful forms of psychic violence. It makes the victim unable to think and reason clearly because of increased stress and adrenal fatigue. In this case, the victim is prone to developing extreme social anxiety, invasive stress-related illness, dissociative identity disorder and severe depression symptoms.
A narcissist can destroy anyone's psychology, but he prefers to find a person who has already been the victim of psychological or physical abuse. He will try to take control of his life, to break his self-confidence and to instill doubt in her.
The most common targets for narcissists are empathic and compassionate people who choose to see the best in others. This type of people will choose to understand the narcissist and trust him.
Thus, this manipulator slowly begins to weave his web around his victim and uses whatever means necessary to make him feel more and more dependent on him. As time goes by, the narcissist will make her victim believe that she is going crazy. This one under her influence, will lose all confidence in her and will question her sanity.
The more narcissists exercise their hold over their victims, the more they enter a completely hysterical mental state. The psychological abuse that victims suffer prevents them from responding to or responding to their "aggressor", so they prefer to isolate themselves and move away from the rest of the world. Even worse, any victim of a narcissist thinks she is the only one responsible for everything that happens to her.
How to be free of a narcissist?
- Talk to a psychologist to identify and confirm the nature of the violence
- Restore a support network
- To withdraw from the abusive situation
- Rebuild mental health and self-esteem
- Develop tools to recognize and prevent future abuse.
