The “true self,” coined by psychoanalyst David Winnicott, is the foundation for healthy maturation and expression of the individual. Sadly, for many people, including codependents, things go awry during the critical developmental period when the true self emerges. Instead, a false self predominates, while the true self recedes; sometimes, into oblivion. The true self is […]
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I really enjoy and try to apply the expression, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” to my own sufferings and I encourage my clients to do so too. Being in a relationship with a narcissist is like having to keep a big sour lemon on your tongue for a prolonged time period, which can […]
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Did your narcissist make promises about your future that never came true? Promises that aligned exactly with what you were looking for? These may have seemed like empty promises, but it could be a prime example of future faking. My name is Tracy Malone and today we are going to define and explore future faking, […]
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There are injustices in life that shake one’s faith in humanity. Witnessing a mother’s efforts to beseech family court to save her toddler-age daughter from a pedophile father defines that description. Irrespective of credible forensic evidence and testimonies by medical doctors and therapists, the horror of child sexual abuse and domestic violence is simply disregarded. […]
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Every week for over a month I’d dread the therapy sessions with the quasi-celebrity sex offender who was mandated into treatment with me. Leading up to each meeting, I’d berate myself for agreeing to take on that high-profile case. I worked in drug treatment facilities with a forensic population. I was not a stranger to […]
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Healthy narcissism is the foundation for a robust mature self. It is what fuels life-affirming autonomy, initiative, competence, identity and intimacy. Folks evidencing healthy levels of narcissism are on the whole satisfied with life and are capable of experiencing humility, empathy, integrity and adequate levels of self-esteem. As to be expected, the sexual expression of an […]
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Empaths are more than empathetic. Like an HSP–highly sensitive person–they’re highly attuned to stimuli and other people’s emotions and energy, usually to a degree considered transpersonal or paranormal. They may be codependent and end up in abusive relationships. Let’s first consider some definitions. An HSP has a rich inner life and deep central nervous system […]
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I don’t know if many of you know this, but I have a 15 year old daughter. A fabulous, smart, out-spoken, every-thing-I-wish-I-could’ve-been at her age, daughter. She loves herself and sometimes doubts herself, but trusts herself most of the time. I didn’t have that, and still don’t some days. She and I recently went shopping […]
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Living two, three, four, or more lives is typical for many narcissists. It truly is amazing how they can compartmentalize and keep everything straight for so long. Many do get caught, but they tend not to learn their lessons and just pick up a few more lives next time around. Finding out that you are […]
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The overall goal of codependency recovery is to become a full-functioning individual. That entails knowing, valuing, and trusting yourself, and expressing yourself in your life and relationships. It involves a complete makeover that impacts what you believe and how you think, feel, and act. (See Stages of Codependency and Recovery.) Codependency untreated follows the same […]
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