Has somebody ever said anything to you that brought you to a halt and caused you to doubt your own sanity? Did it cause you to have doubts about your memories and your understanding of reality? If so, there is a good chance that you have been the victim of gaslighting.
The term “gaslighting” is often used by the media these days. The word is derived from Patrick Hamilton’s 1939 stage drama Gaslight, in which a husband mentally manipulates his wife. Gaslighting is a type of emotional abuse in which the victim is led to doubt his or her own memory of the truth, memory, or perspective. It is one of the most pernicious forms of maltreatment. It takes direct aim at a person’s sense of self-confidence, gradually eroding it until they begin to doubt if everything they perceive, think, and feel is genuine or a creation of their mind.
Gaslighting also erodes an individual’s capacity and motivation to confront their abuser, since each time they try, the goalposts are shifted even further to turn their argument against them. Eventually, dread and uncertainty render the victim so helpless that they are easily led into doing anything the offender demands. They relinquish all resistance and become figurative pawns of their manipulators.
Here are 10 examples of what gaslighting sounds like. Make sure to read until the end to arm yourself with an inner gaslighting detector.
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