Healing From Toxic Relationships and Getting Away from Gaslighters with Stephanie Sarkis

Carla finds out she is a lifestyle guru during a Google search, and she and Sherry take a Love Fix question on recognizing true manipulation versus trendy buzzwords. They then welcome Dr. Stephanie Sarkis, a Psychotherapist in anxiety, gaslighting, narcissistic abuse, and ADHD. She is also the author of six books, one workbook, and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor. She talks about the key factors that can make someone susceptible to being gaslighted, what truly defines gaslighting, and how to disengage and get out if you are in a relationship with a gaslighter. Stephanie also gives us a glimpse into her new book, Healing from Toxic Relationships.    Connect with Us! The Love Fix | @thelovefixpodcast Become a Member — Codependency Special — Wake Up Recovery — $1 trial membership Get 1:1 Dating & Relationship Coaching  The Love Fix Relationship Quiz   Sherry Break Free from Narcissist Abuse     Carla Website | Instagram | Facebook | Contagious Love | Online Dating Bootcamp   Sign up to be in TDR database: https://www.threedayrule.com/CarlaRomo   Dr. Stephanie Sarkis  Website | Gaslighting  | Healing from Toxic Relationships    Today’s episode is sponsored by Carla’s book Contagious Love: Break Free from Codependency for Damn Good and Sherry’s book Love Smacked: How To Stop the Cycle of Relationship Addiction and Codependency To Find Everlasting Love.   Thanks to Contagious Love and Love Smacked for sponsoring this episode.   What You’ll Hear In This Episode: What is gaslighting in relationships, and how did we get to a 1944 movie to it being used so much in popular culture now?  Everyone is susceptible to being gaslit, even if you’ve had a history of healthy relationships.  We are extra susceptible to falling prey to a gaslighter if we have a physical or mental issue, even ADHD.  Word weaseling is picking apart words and using semantics so that the attention gets deflected and the partner becomes distracted, confused, and focused on something else rather than the gaslighter.  People that are true sociopath narcissists can get a dopamine boost from controlling people.  Ego dystonic means that what you’re doing and what your beliefs are, are not mixing. Ego syntonic behavior is when you think that you’re fine, but everyone else has the problem. Gain access to Dr. Stephanie’s new book Healing from Toxic Relationships, along with how to work with Sherry and Carla on overcoming codependency, dating, break-ups, healing from toxic relationships, and gaining confidence.  What can someone do when you are in a trauma response?   Your brain goes to whichever option it thinks is the one that's most unlikely to ensure your survival, so don’t beat yourself up over your trauma response.  What can we learn from how our partner treats the waiter or someone they see as lower than them?  How can you fully break away from the never-ending loop of trauma and get back together?