Narcissist Apocalypse: Patterns of Abuse

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses the top 10 exploitations of cultural norms and expectations that abusers use to justify their abuse. The norms and expectations discussed in this episode are gender roles, body standards, family honor, parental authority, loyalty, divorce, privacy, forgiveness, hospitality, and religious doctrine. If you want to be a guest on our surv...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Donalda shares her story of abuse at the hands of her entitled husband. What started with red flags, such as telling Donalda to stop talking to her online friend and Donalda doing the lion's share of the housework, slowly morphed into picking fights, arguing, and full-on rages. As things escalated, Donalda was then accused of cheating, as her husband denie...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses the psychology abusers use to normalize toxic behaviors. Topics discussed in this episode are: gaslighting, religion, cultural norms, social influence, minimizing, blame-shifting, rationalizations, cognitive dissonance, gender roles, patriarchal systems, conditioning, generational trauma, shame, dissociation, and much more. BONUS INTR...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Freya shares her experience of growing up with a narcissistic mother and an enabling father, painting a vivid picture of the emotional rollercoaster that comes with a lack of consistent emotional safety and the struggle to break free from intergenerational trauma. Freya offers insight into the emotional labor of protecting her sibling from an abusive paren...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses his outline for a sequel to the hit movie 'Pretty Woman.' Once Edward sweeps Vivian off her feet from the streets of Los Angeles to Park Avenue, Vivian lives what she thinks is a fairy tale marriage. However, as Vivian tries to express the opposite wants of Edward, she soon finds herself the victim of severe psychological abuse at the...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Terra shares her experience of meeting a partner who wanted to share the polyamory lifestyle with her, only to find out that she was being mirrored into believing so. As the relationship devolved, Terra's new partner expressed her jealousy through rage-filled rants, which had Terra walking on eggshells. Tara's narrative is a raw look at the impacts of gasl...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon re-examines the iconic film "Pretty Woman" through a critical lens, unearthing the darker undertones of love bombing and abuse hidden within this beloved romantic narrative. Listen in as we peel back the charming veneer of Richard Gere's character, Edward, to reveal early signs of manipulative behavior, possessive/patronizing tendencies, and a...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Elsey shares her story of marrying a calculating manipulative abuser. When Elsey met her abuser, she thought that since he came from a good family in the community, then he must be a good person. Sadly, Elsey was wrong. After the initial love bombing phase of their relationship, Elsey began to endure a myriad of manipulation and abuse tactics that were eve...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses the top 10 ways a narcissistic abuser will confuse you into thinking you're the narcissist. This episode isn't just about the crazy making, but also about discerning the truth from the lies you've been told. The silent treatment vs. taking time to yourself. The hero/saviour conundrum. Everyone loves them, it must be me. Abuse vs. self...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Haya tells the story of marrying the man of her dreams, only to find out he was living a double life. One day, the heat stopped working at Haya's home, only for Haya to find out that her husband hadn't paid the bill for months. Even though Haya accepted his excuse, this began a line of questioning as things didn't add up. And unfortunately for Haya, the mo...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses the top signs of trauma in adults after narcissistic abuse. Plus, Brandon talks about how many people may not even realize they have trauma until they begin to experience symptoms that can negatively impact their daily lives. If you want to be a guest on our survivor story podcast, please click here or send us an email at narcissistap...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, we talk with Renee Swanson (Host of The Covert Narcissism Podcast) about her abusive marriage to a covert narcissist, the grief process, reclaiming your voice, and healing from narcissistic abuse through community. You can reach Renee Swanson by emailing her at renee@covertnarcissism.com or by visiting her website at http://www.covertnarcissism.com Ren...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Paris tells her story of marrying a victim-playing abuser. At first, Paris was love-bombed in a way that set her heart on fire. It was intoxicating and overrode all her other senses. From there, her future abusive husband began to play the victim in his life and use guilt to hook Paris in for good. It was a whirlwind that was hard to break free from, and b...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Shilo tells her story of growing up in an enmeshed family and a marriage marred by faith-based abuse. Throughout Shilo's life, her mother was always in the background pulling strings and this included her abusive marriage. Shilo was literally living in a twilight zone, only to emerge once she divorced. It's a sinister story of scapegoats, puppet masters, s...

In the episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, we have the return of Maude from our March 7th, 2024 survivor story, and we discuss the crucial moments that led to her escape and the subsequent journey of healing/self-discovery. Maude also discusses the ways you can doubt yourself after being gaslit for so long and the tips she has for abuse survivors to regain their sense of self and what is true. *** C...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Blue tells her story of The Frog in the Boiling Pot. Blue was swept off her feet by the man of her dreams, and they moved in together quite quickly However, the abuse began slowly as nitpicking. A year later, the nitpicking also included putdowns. And by year three, the nitpicking and putdowns began to take a toll on Blue's identity. So by the time the phy...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, we welcome play therapist, Sybil Cummins (MA, LPC, ACS), to explore the transformative power of play therapy for children who've faced/witnessed the darkness of coercive control, domestic violence, and narcissistic abuse. Listen in as Sybil enlightens us on how imaginative play not only offers a vital outlet for children to process trauma but also strength...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Emma chronicles her triumph over childhood trauma and a series of scary abusive relationships. Emma's story begins with an upbringing fraught with abuse, low self-worth, and suicidal ideation. As Emma grows older, her life takes a turn into darker waters as she recounts how she navigated the treacherous currents of coercive control, gaslighting, manipulati...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon reads letters and poems from survivors of domestic violence, coercive control, and narcissistic abuse about their experiences. Plus, Brandon analyzes the letters to discuss the big themes of being good enough, survival, and your basic human rights. *** CONTENT WARNING - This episode discusses sexual abuse and physical abuse. *** If you want to be a...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, a transgender woman named Dana courageously shares her story of surviving emotional and sexual abuse by her father. As the eldest child, Dana grappled with the responsibility of protecting her mother and sister while navigating her own harrowing path in and out of the home. Once Dana was out of her abusive home, she thrived through the transformational pow...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Maude about how she plans to escape her current relationship with an animal abuser, who is also an emotionally, physically, and sexually abusive narcissist. We used a voice changer for this episode. The sound may not be the best because of it, but it was needed for safety reasons It's a story of dehumanization, infidelity, suicide threat...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, we talk with an abuse survivor named Terry, and Terry was trauma bonded to a manipulative physical abuser. They say it takes an average of 7 times to leave your abuser, but for Terry is was much higher. To quote Terry "It's not that I didn't want to break away from my abuser, it was just, I didn't know how to." However, Terry eventually did go no contact,...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses Lundy Bancroft's 10 types of abusers & the role of narcissistic personality disorder. Plus they discuss, minimization, gaslighting, physical abuse, control, power, triangulation, threats, intimidation, guilt, invalidation, kernels of truth, and much more. *** TRIGGER WARNING - We discuss physical abuse and suicide in this episode. ***...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Abigail tells her story of being raised by a psychologically and physically abusive father. Abigail's father needed to be the center of attention for everything, and if he wasn't, everyone in her family faced the consequences. Abigail's story isn't just a story of being abused, but it's also a story of seeing her mother being abused, how her mother didn't...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Dr. Ryan Sultan unpacks the complexities and nuances of trauma and its therapies. Dr. Sultan explores how cutting-edge therapies are revolutionizing the way we approach healing. He demystifies the scientific intricacies behind treatments like EMDR, a fascinating neurological approach for addressing trauma, and discusses the promising frontiers of ketam...