Number four: loneliness. Loneliness is the emotion you must never let a narcissist see because it tells them that you are standing on fragile ground. Narcissists target people who are isolated, as they thrive on loneliness. To them, loneliness is not something to comfort; it is something to conquer. When they sense you are lonely, they do not feel compassion; they feel opportunity. They treat your loneliness like an open wound they can press anytime they want to control you.
A lonely person is the easiest target for a narcissist, and they know it. They see it in your silence, hesitation, and the lack of anyone to call when things get bad. Narcissists are predators of isolation. The more alone you are, the more confident they become in how far they can push you. Once they realize you are lonely, they start convincing themselves that you have no one but them, that you won’t leave, and that they can treat you however they want.
This belief changes everything about how they behave. They become more reckless with your feelings, careless with your boundaries, and brutal with their words. They become extreme with their punishments because they think your loneliness traps you. A narcissist thrives when you are cut off from those who could remind you of who you are. Your loneliness provides the perfect environment to reshape your identity, rewrite your memories, and convince you that chaos is love, disrespect is passion, and control is care.
Emotion 5: Attachment
Number five: attachment. Attachment is the emotion you must never let a narcissist see. The moment they sense you are attached to them, they stop seeing you as a person and start seeing you as property. Narcissists do not understand attachment the way healthy people do. To them, attachment is not love, bonding, or even connection; it’s leverage. It signals that they can switch from charming you to controlling you because your heart is already tied to something they never plan to protect.
The second a narcissist realizes you are attached, something shifts in their eyes. They relax, stop trying, and cease the effort to perform the version of themselves they created to win you over. Why? Because attachment tells them you are emotionally invested, and emotional investment tells them you are less likely to leave. Someone who is less likely to leave is someone they can afford to hurt. Attachment is the moment the relationship becomes dangerous, the point at which they know they can withdraw affection and you will chase after it. They can withdraw effort, and you will make excuses; they can withdraw time, and you will still wait.
Emotion 6: Confusion
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