Emotional Manipulation: How To Avoid It

Feelings are what humanize us; wonderful sensations ranging from infinite happiness to devastating sadness. When we fall in love, we are much more vulnerable and that is why emotional manipulation can occur in a relationship.

How do I realize that I am the “victim” of emotional manipulation?

You will be surprised to learn that emotional manipulation is not always easy to recognize. How is that possible? Because we are talking about that complex and intense dimension of the human psyche, also known as love.

Many people, for example, confuse love with the desire for mastery. “My partner is jealous because he loves me…” is, without a doubt, one of the most spoken phrases, indicating long-term problems. Let’s go a little deeper into the subject.

1. Love is not mastery

There are couples who love to do everything together: to go out, to meet friends, etc. This is a good habit, even indicated, but not if the reason behind it is the desire to maintain “control”.

There are people who, for example, can’t bear to see their partner leave home alone, have friends or even have a professional life.

We have to be careful. Love does not mean controlling the other person or forbidding them to do certain things.

In such cases, you may hear remarks such as “Do you really leave the house dressed like that?”, “Why go out with that friend of yours when you have me?” or “If you do that, you prove to me that you don’t love me. I offer you everything, and you don’t appreciate anything. ”

2. The need not to give up self-esteem

Emotional manipulation directly attacks self-esteem. When we are in a relationship, we give everything of ourselves to the other person, we love her more than anything in the world and we would do everything for her. There is nothing wrong with that, but we must learn to protect ourselves.

If your partner starts to put his own needs above yours and has a selfish behavior, you will end up suffering and feeling worse and worse every day.

Most of us perceive love as an exchange of affection and desire, a balance between what we give and what we receive. If we are always in the position of the giver, we feel manipulated and empty-handed, losing our self-esteem that helps us find happiness.

3. Gradual loss of identity and emotional manipulation

Sometimes we fall in love with the wrong person. It happens to be a love that we cannot control and we sink even deeper into a whirlwind of intense emotions. There are people who are not mature enough to maintain a healthy relationship and instead of making you happy, they cancel your identity little by little.

Such a partner does not allow you to have friends, his wishes are always in the first place, and yours are neglected. It degrades you, tells you that you are stupid and you don’t do certain things properly… it humiliates you endlessly until you become just a shadow of the person you were: happy and full of dreams.

How to avoid emotional manipulation

In order to become the victim of emotional manipulation, it is necessary to define exactly what the limits are in your relationship. What is your limit? The moment you realize that you are no longer happy. Easy to say, but many people do not end a relationship, even if they are aware of their unhappiness. How is that possible? The reasons are as follows:

• Despite being unhappy, they still love their partners. A breakup is always complicated and painful.
• Fear of loneliness.
• They are afraid : they think that their partner will have a negative reaction.

You have to be determined and brave. Ask yourself if you are willing to spend the rest of your life with a person who suffocates and manipulates you as they please. A man who doesn’t respect you. You may not want to end the relationship, even if you know it’s toxic. To make a decision, you need to weigh the pros and cons.

Ask for help and support from family and friends. They can give you the strength you need. Ending a relationship is not easy and it is painful for both parties.

But don’t forget: we all have the right to be happy. And you always deserve the best. You deserve to start your day peaceful and full of dreams. We assure you that there is someone there who will make you happy and appreciate you as you are.