blame | Life Recovery

7 Warning Signs of Gaslighting

What is gaslighting? It’s a form of emotional abuse where the perpetrator makes the victim feel as if they are losing touch with reality. The term originated in 1938 from the British play, Gaslight; and then with the film adaptation in 1944, which portrayed the story of a woman whose husband manipulated her into believing she was slowly going insane.

Gaslighting is subtle; a gaslighter uses their words to control. After all, words are powerful. Proverbs 18:21 says, “The tongue can bring death or life.”

Most people, however, don’t know they are victims of gaslighting. What about you? Would you know if someone were gaslighting you? Here are 7 warning signs: (more…)

11 Signs and Symptoms of a Reactive Life

Life Issues

We deny
It’s easy to ignore our issues. Like the disabled man in John 5 who waited for years by a pool to be healed, so we are looking for a magical cure to make us whole. But healing doesn’t come instantaneously. In fact, it takes hard work to stop reacting and turn to Christ who encourages us to “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!” (John 5:8).

We minimize
Let’s face it: Our issues are huge! However, we try to make ourselves feel better by saying that they’re small. Admit the truth, and you will be on the road to recovery. The Living Bible puts it this way: “You can’t heal a wound by saying it’s not there,” (Jeremiah 6:14). (more…)