“I would tell him I was in for the night, he would call and insist I meet him out somewhere. I would say no more drinks, he would order me another one. Every bartender in town knew to pour half my drink out when he wasn’t looking. I was scared to tell him no.”
‘I tried to break up with him. 2 days later, he was curled up with my daughter watching Disney movies. He wanted to destroy me.’: Woman says ‘I’m taking my power back’ after dating narcissist
‘Tonight, my boyfriend said ‘thank you for cooking’ after I put frozen chicken strips in the oven.’: Woman urges ‘it’s never too late to find someone who appreciates you’
“One time, I spent 3 hours cooking an extravagant meal for a man only to be told, ‘I don’t really like that. I think I want Wendy’s tonight.’ It’s never too late to find someone who appreciates you, who you can appreciate back. WAIT for what you deserve.”
‘My mother texted me, ‘You’re a disgusting human being for not visiting me.’ We are in the middle of a strict quarantine.’: Daughter to narcissistic mom urges ‘don’t let them get you down’
“The last text she sent me was, ‘I’m happy your husband died. You deserve it.’ At 3 a.m. in the morning, out of nowhere. Somehow, it hasn’t registered in her head that we are not ‘friends.’ She has been taking advantage of the pandemic to make me feel especially guilty.”
‘Your chest looks so flat. What have you done to yourself?’: Young woman battles with weight, self-esteem after abuse, now uses her voice to protect women
“During 5th grade, at my father’s office party in some big hotel, I went upstairs to play hide and seek. A completely drunk stranger started following us. When the rest of the group hid behind the sofa, the man pinned me down. After he was done, I ran downstairs to my parents. We were all crying and pointing upstairs. All the adults searched for the man, but he had left the premises. I packed more than 33 pounds. They would warn their kids, ‘Stop eating. Do you want to look like her?’”
‘I remember blood all over the counter, a calm look on my mom’s face. At 13, she sent me to get bandages for her ‘accidental’ cut.’: Woman shares healing journey after mother’s suicide
“I’ve been to my mom’s grave twice. In 20 years. You won’t find a single photo of her in my home. I know this wasn’t her fault. It doesn’t change the effects her illnesses have had on me. None of it changes that her 60th birthday is not a birthday at all, because she is dead. I want to honor her, I really do. But I can’t face the woman who tried to break me.”
‘My marriage reared it’s ugly head. I was at a fork in the road. I could leave and save myself heartbreak, or I could stay.’: Woman finds ‘strength’ to divorce abusive husband, admits there’s ‘beauty in vulnerability’
“I never planned on writing my story. While I was more fearful of the future than I care to admit, I remember leaving the courthouse the day I filed for divorce feeling like I could breathe for the first time in years. It was the feeling of freedom. For years, I allowed the world to wash over me, resigned to the lies I’d been told about who I was, who I wasn’t, and who I could never be. On the hard days, I have to remind myself to call these thoughts what they are: lies.”
‘I saw him text a girl, ‘I miss you. I can’t wait for her to move out so we can be together.’ I was livid and shaking.’: Woman leaves ‘narcissist’ husband after years of ‘manipulation and lies’
“Within moments, he mentioned that he would be seeing other people. I said, ‘Pardon me?’ He had everything he could ever want. A housewife making homemade meals every day. A clean house, two beautiful happy boys, a gorgeous house. I took care of myself and couldn’t understand why I was not enough for him.”
‘Pregnant at 18, my abortion was the next day. A switch flipped.’: Mom raises son with missing limbs despite abusive partner’s pressure to terminate pregnancy
“Finding out your baby has no arms or legs? Earth shattering. Who wants a single mom with a deformed monster?! NO ONE!”
‘I made the decision to cut my mom out of my life. Now that I’m a mom, I wish she was there to guide me. I wish my children knew her. But I know she won’t change.’ Mom explains heartbreaking decision to protect her kids
“There were no I love you’s. I remember her spending a lot of time in bed, flying off the handle easily, expecting a lot out of everyone while she gave the minimum. I knew something was wrong, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Was she a drug addict? Or was she just a bad person? I vow to give my children everything my mom could not give me.”
‘I no longer speak to my mom. Every day, I wonder about her. I look in the mirror and see her staring back. But I have to choose me over her.’
“Every day, I’m reminded that I’ve never felt the love of a mom. I know if I open the door to her, she’ll destroy me and all the progress I’ve made. I’m hurt and sad, but I’m also better off. You do not need to have a toxic person in your life just because you share DNA.”
