One struggle that shows up for Highly Sensitive People (HSP) and Empaths is that we can end up in romantic relationships with people that either are narcissistic or have this trait.
With our kind hearts, we often ignore how we feel and we want to be a supportive partner.
This works well for the narcissist as they enjoy having the focus only on them. In fact, they can really struggle when they aren’t the center of attention.
You might find that when you bring up something that’s been bothering you, they can’t listen and in the end you are blamed for the issue.
Over time, you stop bringing up things because it only makes things worse, and you end up feeling bad about yourself.
You might notice that your self-doubt has increased as well as anxiety.
Before you say anything or do anything, you start to anticipate how your partner will react. You feel shut down, invisible, exhausted, and you’re unsure what to do. You have thoughts of ending the relationship but don’t want to hurt them.
So maybe it’s not as important to decide if your partner is a narcissist but instead, explore how you feel in the relationship.
Relationships are meant to offer a safe space to be held and loved.
Relationships are meant to provide safety to say the hard things and not be blamed.
Relationships are meant to be joyful and silly and fun.
A relationship with a narcissist often feels heavy and hard. They won’t tell you that you matter, because they believe they matter more. And they are wrong about this.
You matter. You do not need to be in constant suffering.
