Are you a narcissism survivor? Are you looking for a place to find healing and support? Are you looking for a narcissist support group? Do you want to heal from the emotional pain from your experience with a narcissist? If this sounds like you, you have come to the right place.
My name is Sean Galla, an online support group facilitator for more than 10 years. In my years of work, I have overseen numerous support groups, including facilitating narcissist support groups. I know firsthand how important it is for victims of narcissistic behaviors to find a place where they can share and get help for their experiences. If you have ever had an experience with a narcissist, a support group can help you overcome the trauma and live a better, more fulfilling life.
In this article, I will cover everything you need to know about narcissist support groups.
Table of Contents:
What Is a Narcissist Support Group?
If you have been in a toxic relationship with a narcissist, you are likely to deal with confusion and hurt. (This is a common topic in an online divorce support group). Even though you know it was not your fault and that you are not to blame, it is hard to shake off the feeling of betrayal, hurt, and confusion. Most victims of narcissistic abuse spend the rest of their lives wondering if there was something they could have done differently to avoid being victims of the abuse or help their loved one with narcissistic behavior. Not having a way to address the issues can cause a lot of mental anguish, which can negatively affect their mental health.
A narcissist support group is a platform where survivors of narcissists come together to share, learn, and heal. Generally, it is a group where people who have been victims of narcissists can meet and share their experiences. Narcissist survivors who have healed from their trauma and want to help others find healing, too, facilitate these groups. By joining a narcissist support group, you have a better chance of leading a better life after your traumatic experience with a narcissist.
Online support groups are safe spaces where you are amongst people who understand. This gives you enough room to share and learn without fear of judgment or intimidation.
Narcissism Disorder
While narcissism is yet to be universally accepted as a personality disorder, practical evidence shows that narcissists are people who make a habit of manipulating everyone around them to the point of wearing down their victim. Victims of narcissistic behavior can easily lose their self-worth and self-determination. They made to believe the narcissist’s reality as opposed to believing in their reality.
There are thousands of narcissists all over the world. On one side of their personality traits, these are self-loving, charismatic people with excess charm, while on the other side is a person with narcissistic traits characterized by gaslighting and abuse. People living with narcissistic disorder have a deep sense of self-worth and greatness that makes them manipulative and very easily angered when they do not get the attention or result they want and consider their right. Narcissistic behavior (a topic that is also discussed in herpes support group topics) is characterized by selfishness, cockiness, love for power, and vanity. Narcissists are self-involved and believe everyone around them should adhere to their orders. Whether you are married to a narcissist, have a narcissistic mother or parent, or you have lived with a narcissist, a support group is the best place to find healing and learn from others who have been victims of this form of domestic abuse.
Benefits of Joining a Narcissist Support Group
When you finally gather enough courage to leave a narcissistic relationship, you are already traumatized, suffer from low self-esteem, and prefer to live in isolation as coping skills. This happens because you think that no one will understand. Most domestic violence victims of narcissists are hardly believed because, in public, narcissists display their best features. They often con other people with their charming personality that projects kindness, perfection, honest, and superiority. This makes it hard for a victim to find people who can believe their experience.
Most abusive relationships victims suffer from character assassination. The narcissist works to ruin their sanity and undermine their reputation to the people around them. (It’s important to note that these kinds of topics are often discussed at men’s divorce forum).
This makes it hard for outsiders to believe that the person they know and love can behave in the way the victim accuses them. Most of the time, the victim is labeled as crazy, narcissistic, and toxic. This makes it hard for the victim to get support because everyone thinks the victim is the oppressor.
In a narcissist support group, you will be in the presence of other people who have gone through similar trauma. This is one of the best places to speak up, be heard, and be believed. You will meet with other victims of narcissistic behavior who are willing to walk with you and help you to find healing. Because of the experiences, the members have with narcissists, you will not need to earn their trust, as they already believe you and know how living with a narcissist can hurt someone. It is in an abuse support group that you can once again find your reality, self-identity, and self-esteem.
When you meet with others like you, you learn that you are not alone. You will learn from others, validate your feelings and emotions, and develop a deep relationship with other survivors as you work to rebuild your life.
What You Learn in a Narcissist Support Group
Acknowledging and accepting the abuse
The first thing you learn when you join a narcissist support group is how to accept and acknowledge that you are a victim of abuse. Whether you are adult children of narcissists, or experienced it from a romantic partner, a narcissistic parent (which is also discussed in parenting support group topics), or narcissistic sibling, accepting your abuse is an important first part of your healing process.
Setting boundaries
In a narcissist support group, you will be encouraged to cut all contact with a narcissist as part of your healing journey. Codependency with the abuser is a common feeling amongst survivors of narcissistic abuse. It makes you want to reach out to your abuser, especially when they apologize and promise to change. In a support group, you will be supported by empaths through the process of cutting contact with your abuser and learn why it is important to cut that toxic tie.
Preparing for complex emotions
When you finally decide to walk away from a toxic environment and seek narcissistic abuse recovery, you are likely to experience pain, grief, loss, anger, and shock, among other emotions. Bottling up these feelings can be detrimental to your mental and physical health. Most people who leave toxic relationships with people with NPD often show symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In a support forum, you will get support and the help you need to overcome these deep emotions.
Reclaiming your identity
When living with a narcissist, you will be required to behave in a certain way. With time, you lose your self-identity and conform to the character the abuser wants you to be. One of the things you learn when you join a narcissist peer support group is how to reclaim your identity. Part of the recovery process involves reacquainting with yourself and learning to do things the way you want them done.
Learning to trust again
Once you have had an experience with a covert or overt narcissist, one of the things you can easily lose is trust. Victims of narcissistic behavior have a hard time trusting people. This is a self-preservation mechanism to ensure they do not fall in the same trap. In a support group for narcissist survivors, you will gradually learn how to trust again. By opening up to other people who have been victims too, you feel less alone. This is important in your healing process. Also, you learn to trust people by first trusting the people in the group.
Top 3 Narcissist Support Groups
Good Therapy
Good Therapy helps millions of narcissist survivors to find therapy specialists, support groups, and treatment centers. The core purpose of this site is to make it easier for narcissists and survivors to get the help and support they need.
Foundations Recovery Networks
As a recovery support network, Foundations Recovery Networks help with interventions for people with a narcissistic personality disorder. In a narcissist personality disorder intervention, family members and friends of people with the disorder discuss consequences of the behavior and get to understand the role played by underlying mental illness in developing the personality disorder. The idea of interventions is not to blame the person but to make them see that they have a problem that needs to be addressed. It also helps the person to get the treatment they need to manage the condition.
Mensgroup.com
As a man who has been a victim of narcissistic behavior, one of the toughest parts of recovery is finding someone to talk to about your feelings, emotions, and trauma. Most people do not believe that men, too, can be victims of toxic relationships. Whether you have narcissist parents, a narcissist spouse or children with narcissism, Men’s Group is an all men online platform where you can get the support you need.
Mensgroup believes that with the right support, anyone can heal, grow, and change. You will be placed in a group with other men who have been through narcissistic abuse and understand your situation. This gives you a free space to share and learn from others who have previously walked in your shoes. With a support system of fellow men, you can overcome your trauma and lead a healthy, successful, and happy life.
Conclusion
It is often said that a problem shared is a problem solved. Joining a narcissist support group is the first step you can take towards healing. A group like Mensgroup.com offers you a platform where you can share your story to inspire others and get support to overcome the trauma of being a victim of narcissistic behavior. You are not alone. A support group offers you a safe space where you meet compassionate people who are willing and ready to guide you through the recovery process.
*Sources: 1. Narcissistic Abuse and the Symptoms of Narcissistic Abuse Syndrome 2. Narcissistic Personality Disorder in Clinical Health Psychology Practice 3. What does narcissism mean? 4. How to Identify a Malignant Narcissist 5. Narcissistic Personality Disorder Statistics
