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How to Find the Right Therapist in Central Point

You didn’t survive emotional warfare and identity erasure to settle for surface-level therapy. It’s time to go deep:

• 🔍 Advanced trauma tools only: EMDR, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, Brainspotting — not the generic “talk therapy” camp.
• 🧠 Nervous-system restoration & self-trust rebuilding.
• ⏳ Flexible pacing — not a six-week sprint.
• 📚 Between-session tools: worksheets, check-ins, exercises.
• 🗣️ Naming your trauma — therapists who call it what it is: narcissistic abuse.

If they can’t deliver that, keep scrolling.

🧾 10 Screening Questions to Vet Therapists in Central Point — and Why They Matter

These aren’t “good to ask.” These are essential. If you’re a survivor of narcissistic abuse—especially the kind that shredded your trust in yourself—then a surface-level therapist will only waste your time and make things worse.

Each of these questions is crafted to reveal how deeply a therapist understands the invisible wounds of emotional abuse. Ask them before your first full session—ideally during a discovery call, intake form, or early email exchange.

How to Find the Right Therapist in Central Point, Oregon After Narcissistic Abuse

1. Do you have specific experience supporting survivors of narcissistic or emotional abuse?

✅ Green flag: They immediately mention gaslighting, trauma bonding, emotional invalidation, or identity collapse. They may describe patterns like “intermittent reinforcement” or “coercive control.” Bonus points if they say the word “narcissistic” unflinchingly.

❌ Red flag: They refer vaguely to “relationship stress” or say “everyone has a little narcissism.” If they start pathologizing your ex/parent but avoid giving structure to what you experienced, that’s not survivor-informed care—it’s filler.

Why this matters: Narcissistic abuse isn’t generic conflict. It dismantles your nervous system, your sense of self, and your ability to trust your perceptions. If a therapist can’t name it, they can’t help you heal it.

2. How do you support clients in rebuilding self-trust after gaslighting?

✅ Green flag: Mentions grounding exercises, journaling prompts, “parts work” (e.g. IFS), or trauma-informed psychoeducation. They’ll talk about helping clients rebuild their internal compass—not just “learn to trust others.”

❌ Red flag: Says things like “We’ll work on boosting your confidence” or “You’ll learn to feel more secure over time.” That’s a soft dodge of a very specific problem: you were trained to doubt yourself. Generic affirmations don’t undo that.

Why this matters: Survivors of gaslighting don’t just feel uncertain—they often believe they’re wrong about reality. Rebuilding self-trust is an intentional, slow process that must be trauma-literate.

3. Which trauma modalities do you regularly integrate into your work?

🧠 Suggest options: EMDR, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, Brainspotting, DBT with trauma-focus, Polyvagal-informed therapy

✅ Green flag: They use at least one nervous-system-centered modality and explain how it helps survivors move from dysregulation to grounded clarity. They’ll reference processing trauma at both the cognitive and body level.

❌ Red flag: They only mention CBT or talk therapy. While these aren’t useless, they don’t reach the survival brain—the part most impacted by narcissistic abuse.

Why this matters: Narcissistic abuse creates trauma stored in the body, not just thoughts. Your healing needs to reach that layer. If they can’t meet your nervous system where it’s at, they can’t help regulate it.

4. How do you help clients who didn’t realize their experiences were abusive until much later?

✅ Green flag: Describes using psychoeducation, emotional mapping, or narrative reconstruction. They normalize the delay in awareness and support the client in making sense of their past without shame.

❌ Red flag: Minimizes the experience. Says things like “That sounds confusing” or “You’re focusing too much on the past.” They may even ask, “Why didn’t you leave sooner?”

Why this matters: Most survivors didn’t know they were being abused until long after the damage was done. Therapists must recognize this as a trauma symptom—not a personal flaw.

5. How do you support boundary rebuilding in clients who have been manipulated or enmeshed for years?

✅ Green flag: Talks about combining assertiveness training with nervous system safety. May mention role-playing, scripting, or somatic boundary visualization. They should see boundary repair as a core trauma skill, not just a communication tactic.

❌ Red flag: Says, “We’ll work on speaking up for yourself,” or gives advice like “Just say no.” That’s like handing a sword to someone who doesn’t know they’re in a fight.

Why this matters: Narcissistic abuse leaves survivors boundary-blind. Your therapist should help you feel your limits again—not just act them out.

6. What’s your approach when a client feels guilt or shame about staying too long in the relationship?

✅ Green flag: Immediately normalizes trauma bonding. May use terms like “fawn response” or “coercive emotional dependency.” Offers tools like self-compassion practices, inner child healing, and contextual reframing.

❌ Red flag: Says things like “We’ll work on why you didn’t feel strong enough to leave” or “You’ll learn to make better choices.” If they’re subtle-shaming you for your survival tactics, run.

Why this matters: The guilt of staying is one of the deepest scars. If your therapist doesn’t know how to handle that without blaming you, they are not equipped to walk you through real trauma recovery.

7. How do you support someone who’s terrified of being alone but doesn’t trust anyone either?

✅ Green flag: Acknowledges this as a trauma symptom, not a contradiction. Talks about pacing intimacy, building internal resources, and restoring relational safety in bite-sized pieces. May mention attachment theory or inner child anchoring.

❌ Red flag: Prescribes quick fixes like “Join a group,” “Start dating again,” or “Spend more time with friends.” This shows a complete misunderstanding of post-abuse nervous system trauma.

Why this matters: Narcissistic abuse fractures your sense of safety—both in solitude and connection. A survivor-safe therapist must guide you toward self-trust before pushing social reintegration.

8. What happens if I disagree with you in session?

✅ Green flag: Says they welcome feedback and explore resistance with curiosity. Uses words like “collaborative,” “inquiry,” or “shared space.” Understands that disagreement can be part of empowerment—not defiance.

❌ Red flag: Gets defensive. Says things like “I’m the professional,” or becomes visibly irritated or dismissive. If they personalize your pushback, that’s a red flag the size of Texas.

Why this matters: After abuse, disagreement feels dangerous. You need a therapist who helps you reclaim your voice, not silence it again.

9. Are you open to long-term therapy, or do you only offer short-term structured programs?

✅ Green flag: Emphasizes flexible timelines, tailored pacing, and long-term emotional growth. They may offer phased work or trauma tiers—but will adjust based on your nervous system, not a billing calendar.

❌ Red flag: Pushes a 6–12 session “resolution plan” or says, “Most of my clients feel better within a few weeks.” That’s not trauma-informed—that’s wishful thinking.

Why this matters: Healing from narcissistic abuse isn’t linear. It’s not “talk it out and feel better.” It’s identity reconstruction. That takes time, space, and deep trust.

10. What kind of between-session support do you offer?

✅ Green flag: Mentions journal prompts, grounding tools, reading assignments, or check-ins (email, worksheets, voice memos). They may suggest nervous system exercises to stabilize you between sessions.

❌ Red flag: Offers nothing. If their support ends when the Zoom call drops, they’re not meeting your recovery needs.

Why this matters: Survivors often spiral between sessions. That’s when the self-doubt creeps in. You need scaffolding, not silence.

Note:

If a therapist can’t handle these 10 questions—or fumbles through them—they’re not the right match for trauma recovery after narcissistic abuse. The best providers won’t be offended. They’ll be relieved that you’re taking your safety seriously.

This is about reclaiming your voice, protecting your time, and investing in someone who actually understands what you’re recovering from.

And that? Is step one in healing for real.

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Trauma-Informed Therapists Near Central Point (In-Person + Telehealth)

Central Point doesn’t offer specialist therapists on-site, but you have strong local and rural Oregon options plus telehealth.

🔹 EMDR + Narcissistic Abuse Recovery

• Chelsea Raines, MA, MPH, QMHP – Inner Peace Counseling (Online/Virtual) Specializes in Transformational EMDR for recovery from narcissistic abuse, PTSD, and complex trauma 
• Bridges to Well‑Being, LLC Group practice offering EMDR, ACT, CBT, plus gut-level healing support 

🔹 Internal Family Systems (IFS)

• Terry Christopher, MSMHC, ThM, MDiv – Central Point, OR Trained in IFS, ACT, Coherence Therapy. Offers depth communication to heal complex trauma. 
• Eve Wolforth, LPC – Online Combines IFS with mindfulness; helps clients feel safe exploring their inner landscape. 

🔹 Brainspotting, Somatic, and EMDR

While Central Point limits in-person specialists, consider regional or online clinicians:

• Gregg Unterberger, LPC – Online Uses EMDR + Brainspotting for trauma resolution (military, PTSD, complex trauma). 
• Dominique Wilson, LCPC‑S – Online Certified EMDR & Brainspotting; somatic + parts-informed support. 

🔹 Additional Telehealth Options

• Jaclyn Ivy Steinmann, MA – FourEight Counseling (Online) Offers client-driven referrals, EMDR through partner network. 

Why These Modalities Are Essential

Modality	Why It’s Non-Negotiable
EMDR	Reprocesses trauma at the neurological level
Somatic Experiencing	Unloads trauma stored in the body
IFS	Integrates fractured parts and restores internal authority
Brainspotting	Targets deep-brain distress points
DBT/CBT Techniques	Grounds advanced therapy in daily boundaries & emotional regulation

Modalities Aren’t Buzzwords — They’re Your Bedside Tools in Recovery

When you’ve been through narcissistic abuse, you don’t need talk therapy that just rehashes what happened. You need modalities—evidence-based, trauma-informed techniques that don’t just “process” your pain, but actually help your body and brain release it. These approaches aren’t optional extras. They’re non-negotiable lifelines. Let’s break them down so you know exactly what to ask for.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)

This isn’t about positive thinking—it’s about neurological rewiring. EMDR helps your brain reprocess traumatic memories that have been stuck in fight, flight, or freeze. For survivors of gaslighting and emotional manipulation, EMDR can reduce the emotional charge around specific memories, restore a sense of internal safety, and help you finally feel like the nightmare is in the past, not living in your present.

Somatic Experiencing

Trauma isn’t just stored in your mind—it’s stored in your nervous system. If you’ve ever frozen during conflict, dissociated in conversations, or physically shut down after emotional abuse, that’s your body holding onto unprocessed trauma. Somatic Experiencing helps release that survival energy through gentle, body-based techniques. It’s not about reliving trauma—it’s about safely discharging it. In Central Point, survivors who feel stuck in shame, numbness, or panic often find this approach helps them reconnect with their bodies in a way that feels powerful, not frightening.

IFS (Internal Family Systems)

Narcissistic abuse fractures your sense of self. You start hearing inner voices that echo your abuser: “You’re overreacting,” “You’re not good enough,” “You deserve this.” IFS (Internal Family Systems) treats these internal critics as protective “parts” that once kept you safe but now keep you stuck. Through gentle inner dialogue, IFS helps integrate these parts and restore your core self—the part of you that’s calm, confident, and in charge. It’s especially helpful if you feel emotionally torn, scattered, or ashamed of how you responded to the abuse.

Brainspotting

If EMDR is a guided reprocessing method, Brainspotting is its deeper cousin. It works by identifying visual points in your field of vision that correlate to emotional hotspots in your brain. Sounds weird? Maybe. But it’s backed by neuroscience. Brainspotting allows your therapist to access trauma that words can’t reach—especially helpful for survivors of chronic emotional abuse who can’t always explain what they feel, but know something is deeply wrong. It’s ideal for when your trauma feels “pre-verbal,” stuck, or stored in the body as tension or collapse.

DBT and CBT (with Trauma Application)

While CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) are often too surface-level on their own, they become powerful when integrated into trauma work. These approaches help survivors create practical, everyday tools: boundary scripts, thought reframes, emotion regulation routines, and crisis plans. When blended with deeper modalities like EMDR or IFS, CBT/DBT serves as the structure that keeps your healing consistent between sessions. It’s less about “changing thoughts” and more about rebuilding your emotional scaffolding with real-world tools.

🔍 Know What You’re Asking For

These modalities aren’t trendy terms. They’re essentials—the tools that help survivors of narcissistic abuse actually heal, not just “cope.” If a therapist in Central Point doesn’t offer one or more of these approaches—or can’t confidently explain how their model helps survivors of emotional trauma—you may be walking into more minimization.

You didn’t survive this to settle for generic care. You deserve a provider who knows the difference between basic support and deep psychological repair—and who can walk you through it one modality at a time.

 

🛠️ Tactical Healing Blueprint

Your No-BS, Step-by-Step Plan to Finding and Working With a Real Trauma-Informed Therapist

You didn’t survive narcissistic abuse to wander through therapy hoping for a “click.” You’re not here for coddling. You’re here to rebuild your nervous system, rewire your instincts, and reclaim your life.

This blueprint doesn’t ask you to believe in healing. It gives you the map to make it happen. Follow it like your boundaries depend on it—because they do.

🔎 1. 

Select 3–4 Therapists Who Actually Fit the Mission

Let’s be real: you’re not swiping for a therapist like it’s a dating app. You’re not hoping for chemistry. You’re screening for precision. Choose three to four therapists who offer real trauma modalities—EMDR, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, Brainspotting—not just “talk therapy” and platitudes.

Scan their bios. Look for keywords that mean something: “trauma bonding,” “gaslighting,” “parts work,” “polyvagal theory,” “nervous system regulation.” If their entire website just says “I help you feel better,” keep scrolling.

This isn’t about vibes. This is about fit—and survival.

✉️ 2. 

Initiate Contact with Your 10 Screening Questions — Use Your Direct Voice

Now you reach out—email, contact form, or intro call—and drop the 10 Therapist Vetting Questions you’ve already prepared. Say it your way. No sugarcoating.

You’re not here to impress them. You’re testing their clarity, not proving your pain.

Let them know up front:

“I’m a survivor of narcissistic abuse. I’m only interested in working with someone who has experience in this area and uses trauma modalities beyond CBT. I have a few questions before we move forward.”

Then send the questions. If they flinch? Fumble? Dodge?

🛑 They’re out. Move on.

📅 3. 

Book Consultations Within One Week — No Endless Browsing

This isn’t a someday project. Set a 7-day deadline from the minute you open that spreadsheet or email. Book consults. Get them on your calendar.

In each consult, don’t just listen to the words. Feel their tone. Track how they respond to your directness. Are they explaining the how, or hiding behind credentials? Do they ask follow-up questions about your trauma responses—or are they already “diagnosing” you with vague labels?

A real trauma-informed therapist will collaborate, not condescend. You’ll know the difference.

⏳ 4. 

Start Weekly Sessions — Track Follow-Through, Not Fluff

Once you’ve chosen someone, commit to weekly sessions to start. Why? Because trauma recovery isn’t just about catharsis. It’s about momentum.

Here’s your checklist during those first few weeks:

• Are they bringing actual tools to the table?
• Are you getting worksheets, grounding techniques, parts work, somatic exercises?
• Are they naming the trauma clearly—without asking you to soften your story?

If they’re nodding along and letting you monologue without building a structure for your healing—that’s not therapy, that’s venting. You need both insight and action.

⚓ 5. 

Anchor Daily Self-Care Between Sessions (No Excuses, Just Reps)

Therapy doesn’t happen once a week. It happens every damn day in your nervous system.

Here’s your minimum viable routine between sessions. These are non-negotiable—not for perfection, but for progress.

• 🧘‍♀️ 5-Minute Grounding Practice: Box breathing. Hand over heart. Something tactile that tells your body: We’re safe right now.
• 📓 Daily Journaling: No need to overthink. One prompt: What did I feel today—and was it mine? This builds clarity and uncovers emotional tracking.
• 🚶‍♀️ Gentle Movement or Body Check-In: Walk. Stretch. Rock. Ask your body: What do you need right now? Then listen. This keeps trauma from parking itself in your fascia.

You’re not trying to “be mindful.” You’re retraining your system to detect safety, detect manipulation, and rebuild your baseline.

📊 6. 

Track Progress Like a Scientist, Not a Supplicant

Every week, ask yourself the real metrics:

• Are my triggers softening?
• Am I setting boundaries sooner?
• Is my voice clearer in conflict?
• Do I feel less fear and less confusion after tough conversations?

If your answers stay frozen for 3–4 sessions with no shift, it’s time to reconsider.

This doesn’t mean you’re failing—it means you’re reading the data.

🔄 7. 

Review and Re-Pivot After 3–4 Sessions — No Apologies, No Guilt

Here’s the line you need to tattoo on your clipboard:

If they can’t help you move, they don’t get to stay in your healing.

You are not obligated to stay with a provider just because they were “nice” or because “it might get better.” Give it 3–4 sessions. If there’s no traction, you pivot.

Send a simple message:

“Thank you for your time. I’m looking for something different at this stage of my recovery and will be exploring other support.”

No guilt. No drama. No explanations.

Because your healing is not up for negotiation.

This Isn’t “Trying Therapy.” This Is Commanding Recovery

This blueprint isn’t for dabbling. It’s for deciders.

For survivors who are ready to stop circling the drain of self-doubt and start executing a strategy.

You’ve been hijacked long enough.

This is how you take the wheel back.

When you apply this blueprint in Central Point—or anywhere—your trauma doesn’t get to run the show anymore. You do.

Peer Support & Community Options

Therapy solves trauma. But connection? That’s what sustains your recovery.

No matter how strong your individual therapy work is, recovery from narcissistic abuse requires community. That means finding people who speak your language—not just your dialect, but your emotional truth.

People who’ve been gaslit, manipulated, isolated—and fought their way back to clarity. Central Point may feel like a small town, but your support options are larger than ever before thanks to global platforms and localized trauma collectives.

Here’s how to build a real community around your healing journey:

Survivor Networks That Understand Narcissistic Abuse

• TherapyTribe (Texas-Based): While not exclusive to Oregon, this peer support platform features localized subgroups for trauma survivors, including emotional abuse and relationship-specific harm. Connect with others going through EMDR, boundary recovery, and rebuilding after years of manipulation.
• MyNARA: A narcissistic abuse survivor network that offers structured forums, recovery timelines, journaling prompts, and global peer matching. You’re not alone in this—and this platform proves it.
• Facebook Groups: Use search terms like “Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Oregon,” “Trauma-Informed Healing Central Point,” or “EMDR Survivors Community.” The goal isn’t quantity—it’s resonance. If a group feels aligned, join silently first, then engage when ready.
• Reddit Communities: r/NarcissisticAbuse, r/CPTSD, and r/raisedbynarcissists are active forums with lived-experience wisdom. While anonymous, they’re often more honest than structured spaces.

Extend Therapy with Trauma-Focused Online Infrastructure

If your local options feel limited—or cost-prohibitive—consider pairing your therapist work with virtual modalities.

• IFS-Informed Groups: Internal Family Systems isn’t just for 1-on-1 work. Online IFS collectives allow survivors to engage in parts work, narrative healing, and re-integration with peer reflection.
• EMDR Intensives & Support Pods: EMDR is more powerful when followed by integration. Look for providers or networks offering EMDR debrief circles, digital grounding exercises, and trauma-processing pods (small groups of survivors working through similar timelines).
• Bridges to Well-Being: A collective that curates trauma recovery providers and group therapy offerings, often regionally grouped. Ask about their Central Point and Southern Oregon cohorts.

Red Flags in Support Spaces or “Healing” Offers (Burn These Immediately)

Support should expand you—not diminish you. If you see any of the following, walk away:

• No mention of trauma modalities. If a group or therapist only offers “talk therapy” with no nervous-system component (like EMDR, Somatic, or IFS), it’s likely to stay surface-level.
• No between-session strategy. True trauma-informed support includes tools between sessions: grounding exercises, journaling, nervous system resets. If the space disappears once the session ends, it’s not a container—it’s a dead end.
• Rigid 6–12 session packages. Recovery isn’t a bootcamp. Anyone who insists your healing will be complete in a pre-paid, templated time block doesn’t understand trauma pacing.
• Minimization of your pain. If a facilitator or therapist reframes your experience as “normal relationship struggles,” “communication issues,” or asks why you stayed so long—cut ties. Immediately.

This is your recovery. You’re allowed to be exacting.

Survivor Empowerment Starts with Precision, Not Permission

You didn’t just endure emotional abuse. You survived psychological warfare. That means your recovery isn’t just about “getting better”—it’s a strategic rebuild of the very systems that were dismantled: trust, intuition, identity, and voice.

You’re not broken. You’re recalibrating.

And yes, even in a smaller town like Central Point, you can access global trauma modalities, vetted providers, and survivor-powered community.

Here’s your move:

• Reach out.
• Vet with intention.
• Engage with clarity.
• Transform, without apology.

You’re not just surviving. You’re constructing a self that knows exactly what it needs, how to spot the fake support, and where to find the real.

That’s not healing. That’s power.

Ask Eve: 7 Ways to Help Yourself When Therapy Isn’t an Option Yet

(Especially After Narcissistic Abuse)

🧾 “I know I need help, but therapy isn’t accessible right now. What can I actually do to start healing without it?”

—Feeling Lost in Central Point

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1.

How do I start healing if I don’t even trust my own memory anymore?

“Sometimes I doubt things I know happened. Is that normal? How do I stop gaslighting myself when there’s no therapist to help sort it out?”

✅ I – Identify

Yes. That’s called internalized gaslighting, and it’s a trauma residue. After months (or years) of being told you were wrong, dramatic, or imagining things, you stop trusting your instincts. You start auto-editing your memory to match their narrative.

🔧 M – Minimize

Use a Daily Reality Check Journal. Start each entry with:

• “What happened?” (Fact)

• “How did I feel about it?” (Emotion)

• “What do I wish I’d said?” (Empowerment)

Write without censoring. This rebuilds the muscle of self-trust by letting your story live uncorrected.

🛡️ C – Control

Save these entries like legal evidence. One day, when self-doubt creeps in (and it will), you’ll re-read them and remember: You weren’t the problem—you were being erased.

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2.

How do I set boundaries when I still feel guilty every time I say no?

“I feel bad enforcing boundaries—like I’m the narcissist. Is that messed up?”

✅ I – Identify

This is called survivor guilt, not narcissism. Narcissists use your empathy as a weapon. So when you reclaim space, your trauma-trained brain panics: “Am I being too harsh?” Nope. You’re being free.

🔧 M – Minimize

Practice pre-scripted boundary phrases in a mirror or voice memo. Try:

• “I’m not available for that.”

• “That doesn’t work for me.”

• “I won’t be continuing this conversation.”

No defense. No justification. Just full stop.

🛡️ C – Control

Keep a list of moments you honored your limits. Celebrate every single one. It rewires your guilt into pride—your nervous system needs to feel safe saying no before it will stop apologizing for it.

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3.

What can I do about the loneliness that feels worse than the abuse did?

“It’s quiet now, and I’m safe. But sometimes I miss the chaos because at least I wasn’t alone.”

✅ I – Identify

That’s not weakness. It’s trauma withdrawal. Chaos creates a chemical cocktail of cortisol + adrenaline. When it’s gone? You feel the crash. It’s not love you miss—it’s biochemical addiction.

🔧 M – Minimize

Swap chaos with nervous system nourishment:

• Soothing music

• Weighted blanket

• Gentle movement (walking, stretching, rocking)

• Pets, warm baths, scents

Give your body comfort without cost.

🛡️ C – Control

Join one aligned online community (like MyNARA or a trauma-focused Facebook group). Post once a week. You’re not trying to be social—you’re proving you still exist outside the narcissist’s orbit.

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4.

How do I stop overexplaining everything?

“Even with strangers, I feel like I have to justify every feeling or choice. I hate it.”

✅ I – Identify

That’s a fawn response—a survival tactic where you please, appease, and over-explain to avoid attack. It worked with the narcissist. Now it’s outdated code running on repeat.

🔧 M – Minimize

Catch yourself mid-spiral with a new mantra:

“No is a full sentence.”

Say it in the mirror. Whisper it while cooking. Write it on your bathroom wall in eyeliner. Tattoo it on your soul if you have to.

🛡️ C – Control

Practice one interaction per day where you say what you mean without apology or backstory. It’ll feel rude. It’s not. It’s recovery.

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5.

What do I do when I feel like I can’t trust anyone anymore?

“Everyone feels unsafe now. Even kind people make me suspicious.”

✅ I – Identify

That’s a hypervigilance reflex, not paranoia. Narcissistic abuse rewires your brain to spot threats before they happen. So now your default mode is: Trust no one or risk it all.

🔧 M – Minimize

Create a green flag checklist instead of a red flag one. Why? Because red flags keep you in avoidance. Green flags teach you what healthy looks like:

• Apologizes sincerely

• Respects your “no”

• Doesn’t flinch when you show emotion

• Lets you speak without hijacking the convo

🛡️ C – Control

Notice when someone meets one of those green flags—and write it down. You’re not rebuilding trust in them. You’re rebuilding trust in your ability to detect safety.

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6.

I’m overwhelmed all the time. Is there a way to calm my body when I’m spiraling?

“Sometimes I feel like I’m buzzing. Can’t eat, sleep, or think. Just panicked.”

✅ I – Identify

That’s not anxiety. That’s a nervous system loop stuck in high-alert. Your body is still living in survival—even though the threat is gone.

🔧 M – Minimize

Do a 3-step somatic reset:

1. Exhale longer than you inhale – 4 in, 6 out

2. Name 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste

3. Touch something cold – ice cube, fridge handle, cool water

This physically tells your brain: “We’re not in danger anymore.”

🛡️ C – Control

Do this twice a day, not just when you’re panicking. Preventative calming teaches your nervous system to expect peace—not bracing as default.

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7.

What if I’m just too broken to fix?

“What if I’ll never fully heal?”

✅ I – Identify

That’s trauma shame talking. Narcissistic abuse doesn’t just hurt—it erases identity. Of course you feel broken. But that doesn’t make it true. You’re not broken. You’re interrupted.

🔧 M – Minimize

Make a proof-of-self list:

• What have you survived?

• What have you learned?

• What did you do this week that your old self couldn’t?

Healing is not becoming a new person. It’s coming home to who you were before they convinced you you were nothing.

🛡️ C – Control

Keep a “You’re Still Here” folder on your phone. Screenshots of affirming messages. Voice memos of your strong moments. Pictures of days you felt powerful.

Every time you think you’re too far gone? Open it.

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Final Word from Eve:

You don’t need to wait for a therapist to start rebuilding.

You are not powerless. You’re potent.

Your nervous system is learning again. Your truth is sharpening. Your voice is crawling back from silence, ready to stand.

When therapy isn’t possible?

Self-advocacy IS the therapy.

Now get loud about your healing. Even in whispers. That counts.

 

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