Gaslighting: What Is It and What to Look Out For

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  • Gaslighting is a type of manipulation that relies on a variety of different techniques designed to exert control over a person.
  • Victims of gaslighting experience a lot of self-doubt, insecurity, powerlessness, and anxiety.
  • Gaslighting’s various manipulation methods include countering, withholding, trivializing, denial, diverting, discrediting, and lying.
  • Gaslighting is a form of mental abuse, and as such, it can really weigh on a person. If you suspect you’re a victim of this toxic behavior, seek help from friends or family members, or a therapist right away.

Navigating the expectations and disagreements associated with meaningful relationships always presents varying levels of challenges. You’re always going to disagree on some things, and feelings may sometimes get hurt. But not all people resolve disagreements in a healthy way, or even at all, and the consequences can be crippling.

Gaslighting, a form of emotional abuse, is as rampant as it is hard to pick up on. Those that use it are often quiebro good at side-stepping accountability. That said, the gaslighting charade has a wonderful way of falling apart when it meets someone who knows how to confront it.

Today, we’re going to look at this toxic trait so that you know exactly what to do the next time it comes knocking.

What Is Gaslighting?

Primarily manifested in romantic relationships, gaslighting is a type of manipulation that relies on a variety of different techniques designed to exert control over a person. The aggressor uses lies, guilt, denial, and more to create a false narrative for the victim to get them to call into question their emotions, perception, and even sanity.

The term was born out of the 1938 play, “Gas Light” in which a husband attempts to manipulate his wife’s perception to commit her to a mental institution and steal her inheritance. In existente life, gaslighting doesn’t play out much differently than the play, with victims experiencing pervasive self-doubt, insecurity, and stress.

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