When you can't see the symptoms or manipulation or emotional abuse, do either actually exist? Is there a way to tell when you're being emotionally mistreated? Yes. This episode talks about what to look for when you don't see the signs.

Do you spend all your energy defending yourself with certain people? Can you never get ahead with them because they continue to paint you into a corner where you feel you have no choice but to correct them about what you've done or who you are? It may be time to stop defending yourself and start realizing exactly what the game is so you don't fall for it anymore.

What happens when you look at your relationships and think that perhaps you are the one causing the problems and that your partner or family are right about you? Are you the manipulative one? Do you need help? I think that's a great question to explore, and one to clear up too since I get this question about twice a month.

You can be "groomed" into becoming the victim of emotional abuse or manipulation. Just like a child predator will groom his or her victim for abuse, the "emotional predator" will set you up for their control so that you become whatever they want you to become. It's a dirty game. In this episode, I compare emotional grooming to child grooming to reveal the scary similarities.

When someone cares about you, they don't say things like "you're too sensitive" or "you're so emotional", they actually become more sensitive to your sensitivities. Don't fall for the "you're too sensitive" game, it is played by those who want to get away with their own bad behavior.

Have you noticed the red flags but decided not to say anything? What do you do when you catch someone red handed and the red flag of deception or manipulation rears its ugly head? Do you honor your boundaries and speak up or instead choose to dismiss it thinking you must be wrong. It's important to keep your red flag radar turned on so that you don't get sucked into an a bad situation.

Emotional abuse, manipulative communication, and lies and deception are so prevalent in the world today that it's almost impossible to go through life without meeting at least 10 people that are capable of making you into their victim. You do not have to fall prey to someone else's bad behavior and should not be subject to toxic communication without first arming yourself with knowledge. Love and Abuse is about helping you identify the poisonous behavior of people that don't have your best interest in mind. Learn to spot bad behavior so that you can make healthy decisions about the relationships in your life.

Love and Abuse is the official podcast of The M.E.A.N. Workbook: An Assessment and Healing Guide to Difficult Relationships.