When you’re in a relationship with a narcissist, you may develop self-destructive behaviors like addiction—to alcohol, cigarettes, food, overspending, or even sex. These behaviors dull the inner pain, but they also become ingrained habits. After leaving, you can’t just stop these habits overnight. It takes time and new coping strategies to heal and release these destructive patterns.
3. Your Inability to Forgive Yourself
Your inability to forgive yourself and the anger you feel toward yourself make it harder to heal. After realizing what happened to you, you might feel disappointed and blame yourself for not seeing the truth or leaving sooner. But you need to remember that you didn’t have the awareness back then that you have now. The trauma bond and cognitive dissonance in the relationship made it difficult to leave. You must have compassion for yourself and let go of that self-directed anger.
4. Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD)
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