As someone who’s been through it, I know how alone and scared narcissistic abuse recovery can feel. You might be wondering how long it will take to get over the way someone treated you, or what steps you need to take to move forward. You might be wondering what’s wrong with you. Take a deep breath and think about this question.

Have you ever had to choose between your safety and happiness?

Even if you’ve never had to make that choice, we think it’s important to talk about how hard it is—and how you can move forward even when staying might feel safer. We’ll be talking about a new term, narcissistic abuse syndrome.

Narcissistic Abuse Syndrome Video

In this video, I explain what narcissistic abuse syndrome means, fill you in on the signs and symptoms of narcissistic abuse syndrome and also explain how to recover from narcissistic abuse syndrome (sometimes also called post-narcissistic abuse syndrome).

In addition to identity erosion and losing the self, understanding what happens after narcissistic abuse and how to perceive it in a whole new way can really be the first step toward healing CPTSD or complex PTSD. If you are a victim of narcissistic abuse syndrome, this comprehensive healing video is for you.

What is narcissistic abuse syndrome?

Narcissistic abuse syndrome is actually just another way to say C-PTSD, or complex post traumatic stress disorder. This is a form of psychological trauma caused by ongoing emotional abuse and other kinds of abuse.

• Narcissistic abuse syndrome is a cluster of symptoms caused by narcissistic abuse. It affects people who suffer from personality disorders which cause them to make bad decisions, particularly when it comes to their relationships.
• It’s due to being treated in ways that produce feelings of shame, guilt, and helplessness in the victim.
• It happens when someone degrades and undermines you, often going out of their way to make you feel inferior or inadequate.
• They do this because they want to feel better about themselves. They want you to know they’re better than you are. It’s a way they feel more powerful than those around them.
• They don’t care what they do to others as long as they get their own needs met in the process. They often manipulate people and situations so that they get what they want.
• This leaves victims feeling like there’s no one else in their corner or supporting them when things don’t go their way, which causes them to lose hope for a better future.

Are you suffering from the symptoms of narcissistic abuse syndrome?

The main symptoms of Narcissistic Abuse Syndrome may include the following: feeling confused, overwhelmed, frustrated thinking you have to be your narcissistic spouse’s friend something is wrong with you—not the situation, but something you did…hoping your narcissistic spouse will change things will never change feeling like your life has been turned upside down—you don’t know what normal is anymore having a sense of impending doom—the world as you once knew it is falling apart not sure of your next steps and want some help getting back on track being optimistic that everything will be okay in the end.

Symptoms of narcissistic abuse recovery syndrome may include:

• A sense of feeling overwhelmed
• A sense of feeling unable to manage on your own
• A feeling of being in a state of flux and flux, that is, never being able to settle into any one way, place, or emotion for too long
• You might feel like you’re stuck between two extremes: numb and out of control, or anxious and worrying about everything.
• You might feel like there’s something you should be doing but can’t put your finger on it.
• You might feel like you’re not living up to your full potential, or that there is something wrong with you because you don’t feel happy all the time.
• You might feel like you’re in a cycle that has repeated itself over and over again.
• You might feel like you are taking care of someone who doesn’t care about how they treat you.
• You might feel like no matter what you do, things never go right.

Learn More: Trauma Bonding and Narcissistic Abuse Recovery

This playlist might also be helpful if you’re struggling with narcissistic abuse syndrome or C-PTSD.

Quick Trauma Bonding Facts

• Trauma bonding is a very common issue for survivors of narcissistic abuse.
• Trauma bonding is similar to Stockholm Syndrome. It’s a condition that causes narcissistic abuse victims to develop a psychological dependence on the narcissist as a survival strategy during abuse.
• Since trauma bonds affect the same part of the brain as drug or alcohol addiction, they also make recovering from a toxic relationship significantly more difficult.

This playlist will not only help you to understand trauma bonding, but it will help you learn how to heal yourself in the process.

Get Help With Your Narcissistic Abuse Recovery

• The QueenBeeing SPANily, Official – We consider this to be the best narcissistic abuse recovery support group on the web. Offers several subgroups and features a vigilant, compassionate admin team full of trained coaches and survivors, supporting more than 12k members. SPAN is an acronym created by Angie Atkinson that stands for Support for People Affected by Narcissistic abuse in toxic relationships.
• Other Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Support Groups – We also have separate groups for each stage in your narcissistic abuse recovery, as well as some for those who have moved past recovery and are evolving into the next stage of their own life. Survivors have unique and individual needs, even when they’ve moved on – so we’re still here for you.
• One-on-One Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Coaching – If you prefer to get more personalized support in your recovery, you might like to schedule a session with one of our coaches to plan and execute your own narcissistic abuse recovery plan.
• Find a Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Therapist – If you’re looking for a therapist for narcissistic abuse recovery, either because you cannot afford coaching and want to use your health insurance or because you have additional issues you need to address that do not fall within the realm of coaching, you will want to find the right therapist for you – and as far as we’re concerned, that therapist must understand what you’ve been through. This page offers assistance to help you do exactly that.
• Where Are You in Recovery? You might not be sure exactly where you fit in and what level of recovery you’ve achieved. If that’s the case, you’ll want to check out this self-assessment to help you determine exactly where you fall in the stages of recovery from narcissistic abuse. Once you finish and submit the assessment, you will be given resources for your own situation, along with recommendations of which groups to join.
• Which Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Program is Right for You? If you aren’t sure which program you want to utilize to facilitate your recovery from narcissistic abuse, this self-assessment will help you decide.