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Surviving Narcissistic Abuse
Surviving Narcissistic Abuse
Surviving Narcissistic Abuse
Ebook53 pages40 minutes

Surviving Narcissistic Abuse

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About this ebook

Narcissism is a personality flaw that has profoundly destructive effects on interpersonal relationships. This book written by an experienced Clinical Psychologist and Psychotherapist describes narcissistic traits and details their impact on different relationships. The book uses examples and notes from psychotherapy cases, to outline strategies to manage narcissistic personalities.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateOct 24, 2013
ISBN9781311853172
Surviving Narcissistic Abuse

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Very helpful quick read but it’s such a complex subject. I’m recovering from some seriously toxic friends, bosses and family members. It’s a slow process and hard because they are such reptiles they like to make me out to be the toxic party when I’ve been all giving, and their actions have left me destitute. I have also just experienced triangulation so badly that it makes me feel I’m toxic by feeling possessive. Then, one friend currently establishing boundaries, recently attacked me when I was laying in bed with fever and in pain when she invited me to stay with her, complaining I was using her and saying she resented me sleeping in a bed she usually slept in etc so clearly none of this is for beginners. I ended the friendship but no doubt she thinks that’s narcissistic!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Talks about stages and boundaries but no info or examples on getting there.

Book preview

Surviving Narcissistic Abuse - Dr. Linda Basson

Surviving Narcissistic Abuse

Dr Linda Basson

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Dr Linda Basson

License Notes: This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this ebook with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Ebook formatting by www.ebooklaunch.com

Table of Contents

Introduction

What are defense mechanisms?

What are narcissistic defenses?

Projection

Splitting, idealization and devaluation

Descriptions of various toxic relationships

Narcissistic mothers

Narcissistic mothers and engulfment

Toxic mothers and triangulation

The narcissistic mother spins her web: the narcissistic set-up

The narcissistic spouse

Toxic friends

Surviving narcissistic relationships and working through narcissistic abuse

Beyond awareness and labeling

Where was Dad?

Leaving the toxic marriage

Toxic relationships and boundaries

Boundaries and toxic mothers-in-law

The power of prediction

Formulating the boundaries

References

Introduction

Healthcare professionals use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition Text-Revision (DSM-IV-TR), to assist with the diagnosis of various mental conditions ranging from mood disorders such as Depression, to anxiety-based disorders such as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and to psychotic disorders such as Schizophrenia. There are also diagnostic criteria for the various personality disorders, but as a private practitioner I do not necessarily formulate a formal diagnosis for every person I see. Quite often I see clients who do not wear a label themselves, but who are involved with people who do. It is commonplace in private practice to work with clients who were or who are in troubled relationships, and who are seeking guidance to understand the web they are or were entangled in. These relationships could be with parents, spouses, siblings, friends, children or even co-workers.

As a private practitioner, I am not always overly pedantic about my client's formal diagnosis. I work with the symptoms and what the client presents to me, without worrying about whether they necessarily fit the diagnostic criteria for a particular disorder or not. As an example, if someone says that they are always depressed and if they describe the various symptoms of depression then I would certainly label the condition and give it a name but without necessarily formalizing the diagnosis. This may be more important for the General Practitioner or Psychiatrist who may wish to prescribe medication.

Of particular interest to this book is the group of people who are victims of personality disorders, particularly Narcissistic Personality Disorder and Anti-Social Personality Disorder. Many people seek counseling because they are perplexed by their relationships with significant others. Quite often they may present with anxiety or depression and it may only become evident at a later stage during the counseling process that their problems arise from dysfunctional relationships.

I

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