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They engage in what I like to call “coded language.”

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Anyone can be a target for an emotional predator – simply being human makes you vulnerable to these toxic types. That being said, it is important to acknowledge the traits that a narcissist looks for in a target so that victims can better protect themselves and cut ties earlier on, especially when they become aware that they’re being exploited.

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Gaslighting is essentially psychological warfare, causing the victims of malignant narcissists to continually question their own reality.

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You never have to compete with anyone – and a healthy partner would never want anyone who they truly love and cherish to feel like they’re competing with anybody anyway.

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I love myself. Truly and always, I love myself. And for the first time in a long time, I am putting myself first.

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They may romanticize the relationship and re-idealize you, taking back all their hurtful words and actions in one fell swoop (or cleverly constructed text message).

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They want to exert power over someone stronger than them, because someone stronger is always a threat to their shady ways.

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Look for these warning signs and spare yourself the suffering—if the guy you’re falling in love with exhibits many of these traits, you should run, not walk, away from him.

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Gaslighting is perhaps one of the most insidious manipulative tactics out there because it works to distort and erode your sense of reality; it eats away at your ability to trust yourself and inevitably disables you from feeling justified in calling out abuse and mistreatment.

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Starting life over without you and our toxic relationship, taught me that I can actually manage to survive by myself.