The feeling that you are sacrificing your sanity to be in a relationship with a narcissist is unfortunately a very common situation. To be involved in any type of relationship that brings such disregard/disrespect to you can go a long way in making you vulnerable to depression, despair, and anxiety – it can bring a steady stream of fear and disappointment, not to mention pain.

Certainly, when you try to confront or talk about relationship issues with a person with narcissistic personality disorder, you predictably are in for some hard-core retaliation (except in the beginning when they are trying to ‘win’ you – love-bombing). It doesn’t take long for most people dealing with someone with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) to realize that this person does not take any type of criticism well, if at all. They will turn it immediately against you and throw the blame fiercely back at you, even if it makes no sense at all.

So, while approaching disagreements with a narcissist routinely results in feeling punished, you soon learn that to achieve any peace in the relationship, you’ll be tempted to keep your frustrations to yourself. And most of us accomplish this superficial harmony through accommodating or pacifying them. This is where we begin to risk losing our sense of our own self and who we are.

Over time, we:

· Give someone else’s words/emotions more authority than your own

· Feel intimidated by them – scared to talk about real issues

· Get confused through manipulation to where you question yourself

· Lose self-esteem to the point that you come to believe you may deserve the awful treatment you are receiving

· Feel discarded, yet cling to the relationship

“One of the greatest tragedies in life is to lose your own sense of self and accept the version of you that is expected by someone else.” – Unknown

Taking yourself back - living a life you want to live – is it possible? Yes. Will it take work? Yes. Being in ANY kind of a relationship with someone who has narcissistic personality disorder is massively destructive, but you can learn tools to be your own self, have joy again, and know that you have value and worth. If you need help in these areas, please reach out: