This May, a Rockland County woman who was a victim of domestic violence will put her steps in motion to help bring light to a lesser-known form of abuse.
Vanessa Reiser, a clinical therapist who created the NYC narcissistic abuse run, will begin her 285-mile journey in Oswego, NY on May 17, 2021, and plans to complete her run 12 days later on May 29th, 2021, arriving at Jay Hood Park, New York City.
You can see the full breakdown of her running route here.
Reiser, who experienced narcissistic abuse first hand, will wear a wedding dress for the entire one-woman run to symbolize the silent victims who fall prey to abuse at the hands of their domestic partners.
“People tend to think of a narcissist as someone who has an inflated ego. However, there is trauma that is caused by narcissistic abuse and runs deeper than most realize,” says Reiser, a licensed psychotherapist in New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts that specializes in narcissistic abuse and domestic violence. Her experience has led her to begin her non-profit Tell A Therapist that is dedicated to connecting people nationwide with empathetic clinicians in their area that specialize in narcissistic abuse and narcissism recovery.
Studies show that domestic violence calls to police and shelters in the U.S. have risen between 6% and 21% (variation depending on the data source) since the start of the pandemic, with the largest increase happening the first five weeks of quarantine.
Studies show that domestic violence calls to police and shelters in the U.S. have risen between 6% and 21% (variation depending on the data source) since the start of the pandemic, with the largest increase happening the first five weeks of quarantine.
Calls to shelters and hotlines have also increased. Google searches for information about domestic violence hotlines have also gone up, with spikes last April, a time when most of the U.S. was under stay-at-home orders.
Some centers are reporting an increase of 70% in calls to the centers in New York.
Some centers are reporting an increase of 70% in calls to the centers in New York.
“What I want the world to know is that narcissism is not about selfies. As a psychotherapist, I know the clinical criteria someone has to meet to be diagnosed as a narcissist, but I did not know the true meaning of what narcissistic abuse was and what it was like for the victims who lived with it, until I started to research. I am now part of a tribe; a group of special superheroes who have survived it. The damage that true narcissists cause is so tremendous; the daily circular conversations, the gaslighting, the lack of empathy, the controlling behaviors, the isolation, manipulation, insatiable attention-seeking, addictive behaviors, anxiousness, entitled thinking, love-bombing, future-faking, lying, cheating, devaluing, and silent treatment are continuous and demented.”
Vanessa also has a goal to raise $200,000 through her run and will donate all proceeds to Domestic Violence Centers in each County she runs through.
Vanessa will run through the following counties:
- Oswego County
- Onondaga County
- Madison County
- Otsego County
- Delaware County
- Sullivan County
- Orange County
- New York County (Manhattan)
For a map of Vanessa’s 285-mile route, visit https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/4192459672.
For more information on narcissistic abuse and how to support Vanessa’ run, please visit www.tellatherapist.org.
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