What to do when someone emotionally manipulates you?
Treating Manipulation
Communicate in clear, direct, and specific ways.
Understand when manipulation is not normal and needs to be addressed.
Set boundaries around manipulation and find a way to let the person know that you understand they are manipulating you, and that you don't want to be a part of that conversation.
How to Handle a Manipulative Person | Stephanie Lyn Coaching
41 related questions found
What are manipulators weaknesses?
They have no ability to love, empathy, guilt, remorse, or conscience. To them, life is merely a game of taking power and control and getting what they want. They see vulnerability as a weakness and staying invulnerable is a great way to hide who they really are.
In some cases, ignoring a manipulator may cause them to lose interest in their target. Since manipulators typically seek control and validation, a lack of response might make them feel insignificant and prompt them to move on to someone more susceptible to their tactics.
Even without being conscious of it they will distance themselves from you. Thus manipulation can be effective but it usually takes up too much energy and ends up leaving you feeling lonely and disconnected. Not to mention, manipulation will prevent you from using your innate power and talents.
It's not just that emotional manipulators keep you bound to them, it's that you keep yourself bound to them by needing and seeking their approval and validation, which, of course, they give or withhold to get what they want from you. They know just how much to give and take to keep you coming back.
How do you beat a manipulative person at their own game?
6 ways to disarm a manipulator
Postpone your answer. Don't give them an answer on the spot. ...
Question their motivations. Manipulators often hide their real motivations because they don't like to take responsibility for their own actions and behaviors. ...
People who have a submissive or dependent personality. The more emotionally dependent a person is, the more vulnerable they are to being exploited and manipulated.
“A manipulative person will generally not respond well to heart-to-heart talks about what you are experiencing; a conversation with a manipulator will often leave you more confused and second-guessing yourself. As such, ghosting a manipulator can be a very smart tactic.”
a strong need to attain feelings of power and superiority in relationships with others. a want and need to feel in control. a desire to gain a feeling of power over others in order to raise their perception of self-esteem.
Be direct and persistent, and use "I" statements to avoid generalities and accusations. For instance, you could say, "I would feel taken advantage of if I did that" instead of, "You're taking advantage of me!" Manipulators will often change the subject or use other avoidance tactics when you confront them.
Manipulators often play the victim role ("woe is me") by portraying themselves as victims of circumstances or someone else's behavior in order to gain pity or sympathy or to evoke compassion and thereby get something from someone.
Some research shows that people who have the ability to be emotionally manipulative, have high levels of emotional intelligence, which can be seen as a positive asset to the workplace. Emotional manipulation is defined as the act of influencing another person's feelings and behaviours for one's own interest.
While most people engage in manipulation from time to time, a chronic pattern of manipulation can indicate an underlying mental health concern. Manipulation is particularly common with personality disorder diagnoses such as borderline personality (BPD) and narcissistic personality (NPD).
The manipulator may experience physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual distress due to a guilty conscience and shame. The manipulator may feel stress and anxiety from having to constantly “cover” themselves, for fear of being found out and exposed.
Develop a strong sense of compassion for yourself and continue to have a firm positive compassionate inner dialogue with yourself when encountering your manipulator.
