Gaslighting Examples And Overcome Psychological Manipulation

September 5, 2024

Have you ever felt like someone is warping reality and you are not sure what is real and what is not?

This is a form of psychological abuse that is commonly referred to as gas lighting and it makes you question your thoughts, feelings, and even your sanity. Gaslighting can severely impact your emotional state, no matter if it occurs in a romantic partnership, at the workplace, or with friends. To prevent and regain control over your life, the first thing you need to do is learn about the signs of gaslighting.

Gaslighting in Relationships

Gaslighting is a type of psychological abuse that is done in relationships and it makes the victim question their own sanity and their self-worth. Here are some common tactics used by a gaslighting partner:

  • Denying Your Reality: Your partner might tell you, “That never happened.” and you are left wondering if it did not or if you are the one who is losing it.
  • Minimizing Your Feelings: They silence your feelings by telling you things like ‘You’re just being dramatic’ or ‘You’re too sensitive’.
  • Shifting Blame: They could even say, “If you didn’t behave like this, I wouldn’t get angry,” which puts the blame on you and shifts the responsibility.
  • Rewriting History: Your partner tells you things happened in a way that you did not experience them and this leaves you questioning your own reality.
  • Undermining Your Confidence: They always challenge your decisions or opinions and this makes you feel like you are incompetent or that you do not know what you are doing.

These tactics can make things very toxic and you can end up not trusting yourself and not being able to see that you are being abused. If you are going through these signs, it may be very important to consult a professional at https://timetobetter.com/

Gaslighting at Work

Gaslighting can be done in the workplace, and this makes the working environment toxic, and affects your self-confidence and overall health. Here are some common examples:

  • Undermining Your Work: A co-worker or supervisor often calls you out for mistakes that are not actually there, telling you things like, “You are useless; you will never get anything right” even when you are performing well.
  • Denying Conversations: Your boss may say, “Yes, I agree with that.” in a meeting and then later on in the day deny that the meeting ever happened and you are left helpless.
  • Taking Credit for Your Ideas: A coworker steals your ideas and acknowledges them as his/her own while denying your input in case of confrontation, making you less valuable in the workplace.
  • Isolating You: They fail to involve you in some crucial meetings or messages and when you are not aware of something, they turn round to accuse you of being ignorant.
  • Questioning Your Competence: Your supervisor might undermine your decisions or capabilities, for instance, by using phrases such as, ‘Do you think you are capable of handling this?’

Such behaviors can be very detrimental to one’s career and psychological well-being. These are some of the signs that one needs to look at when trying to safeguard themselves at the workplace.

Gaslighting in Friendship

It can also be experienced in friendships whereby a close friend starts manipulating you or diminishing your worth in order to have authority over you. Here’s how it might show up:Here’s how it might show up:


  • Dismissing Your Feelings: Your friend might respond, “You’re being too dramatic,” each time you voice your worries, thus causing you to question the legitimacy of your feelings.
  • Spreading Rumors: They might be talking about you behind your back and when you confront them, they will deny it making it hard for you to know who to believe.
  • Undermining Your Achievements: If you tell them that you have achieved something, they may reply with “It is not a big deal” and this makes you feel unimportant.
  • Twisting Your Words: They may twist or even overemphasize something you said then turn around and accuse you of being incoherent or dishonest.
  • Creating Confusion: Your friend may say one thing and do another and this confuses you and makes you doubt the nature of your friendship.

Such strategies may leave you doubting your worth, and the credibility of your friendship with the person in question. If you see these signs, it is possible that it is high time to consider the relationship’s future and get emotional abuse therapy.

Overcome Psychological Manipulation

Manipulation in relationships, at the workplace or even in friendships can have a negative effect on your mental health. It is a type of psychological abuse that undermines your self-esteem over time and makes you question your sanity. It is important to understand the signs of gaslighting so that one can regain the power and avoid further abuse.

If you are a victim of gaslighting in any aspect of your life, then you should not feel like you are all alone. If you require assistance from a professional to improve your quality of life, health and wellbeing, our highly skilled and licensed specialists at TimeToBetter are available and eager to assist you.

Photo credit: HWM.


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