Photo by Specna Arms on Unsplash

After two divorces, “Patricia” knew exactly what she was looking for in a man, and with “Jeffrey,” she thought she found it. He served heroically in the military yet was tender and cuddly. He was a Christian who listened when God spoke to him. But slowly Jeffrey’s behavior changed, and his true nefarious intentions were revealed.

Abusers use a variety of tactics to manipulate their targets, and one of them is guilt. Mandy Friedman, LPCC-S, CCDVC, CCTP, a counselor who specializes in treating victims of abuse, wants survivors to know that guilt is a red flag. It may mean that you’re being manipulated now, or that you’re replaying old tapes from the past in which you were manipulated. Mandy explains how to figure out why you feel guilty and what to do about it.

Resources

Mandy Friedman, LPCC-S, CCDVC, CCTP

Clermont Mental Heath

513-655-6911

When “Avery” married “Jonathan,” she thought she was marrying her best friend. On their honeymoon, he wanted her to buy a creepy stuffed goat head — the first of his many unreasonable demands. No matter how hard Avery tried to please Jonathan, he kept claiming she was causing his anxiety and he'll kill himself because of her. And then Avery learned the truth about her husband.

Travis Vining could no longer function in life. He suffered back pain, migraine headaches, weight loss and nosebleeds. Finally, in desperation, Travis asked if God were real, and if so, could He help. In time, Travis found recovery through acceptance and forgiveness. He also recovered repressed memories of why he felt so tormented — his father’s unspeakable criminal behavior.

Resources

Miracle in the Madness website

LAF with GOD website

The Miracle in the Madness: Grateful to be the son of a murderer on Amazon

Transforming Darkness to Light, for Giving on Amazon

LAF It Off!: How to Unleash your superpower! on Amazon

“Kathy” was 17, bright, pretty, wealthy — and totally unaware that others might want to take advantage of her. She met “Rick” at church, and he saw a juicy target — a naïve young girl with money. He told her God wanted them to be together. Unfortunately, Kathy believed him.

Donna Andersen wants the world to know that millions of sociopaths live among us and do not have the ability to authentically love. She shared her message at a TEDx event in 2022 and her presentation was well-received. But TED never posted her video on its website, and never explained why. Donna even supplied an annotated script with scientific citations for everything she said. No response. Finally, she re-recorded the talk and posted it on Youtube. If you think her message is important, please share it. 

More information

Annotated script to Donna Andersen's talk on How to protect yourself from sociopaths

Tracy Malone, author of the popular website NarcissistAbuseSupport.com, coaches people who are trying to divorce disordered spouses. One of the most important things people in this situation need to understand, she says, is that the person you married isn’t the person you thought they were. They will lie and make false accusations. So you need to be clear about what you want from the divorce, and make sure all the actions you take align with your goals. If you have children, you need a solid parenting plan, and Tracy has a program to help you.

Resources

NarcissistAbuseSupport.com

ParentingPlans.org

“Janet” had five children with “Anthony.” Although she believed that marriage was for better or worse, the gaslighting, emotional cruelty and financial irresponsibility eventually became unbearable. Then one day the cops were called, she and the kids had a chance to escape.

Dr. Liane Leedom at a Society for the Scientific Study of Psychopathy conference.

Anyone can be targeted by a sociopath at any point in their lives. But Dr. Liane Leedom explains that men and women who experience abuse during mid-life have much to lose and often a more difficult recovery. She then describes skills that can help survivors overcome the experience.

Resources

Contact: [email protected]

See Dr. Liane Leedom’s work on Researchgate

Skills training for recovery from narcissistic abuse, gaslighting and toxic stress, presented by Dr. Liane Leedom

“Mark” made false accusations against his wife, “Renee,” that landed her in jail. That was just the opening round —as they divorced, and even after their divorce, he continued to harass her. But Renee stood strong, escaped and turned her ordeal into an opportunity to show compassion to others. 

Resources

Information on California Assembly Bill 2391 protecting domestic violence victims from vexatious litigation:

Cunningham bill signs into law, protecting domestic violence victims, in the Paso Robles Press

California legislative information on AB-2391