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Narcissistic Manipulation: Language Red Flags
Silky traps sprung with empathy
The key to a narcissist’s web is empathy.
Narcissists keep their traps sticky through both the exploitation of their victim’s empathy and performative empathy of their own. And the secret ingredient to that winning combination is belief.
More often than not, these individuals are entirely convinced of their narratives and are therefore not being consciously malicious or manipulative. Or at the least, they don’t view themselves as manipulative. They truly perceive themselves as being victimized, and that belief strengthens their weapons.
My best friend and I were having yet another intensive conversation about the toxicity of our relationship. We each spent time acknowledging our own unhealthy behaviors and how they impact the other.
During the course of this conversation, I tearfully confessed that there were things that transpired as a result of our dynamic that I didn’t think I could ever forgive myself for.
Hours later, feeling lighter and more connected, as we were preparing to part ways my friend became squirmy. She started a sentence, stopped, mumbled, “never mind”.
Immediately, my internal alarm system began to perk up. “Never mind” was a dangerous word…
