5 Signs That You Are Being Manipulated
No one likes being manipulated. Sometimes it can be hard to tell if you are being manipulated, especially if you are friends with or in a relationship with someone who is manipulating you. Often, manipulation involves feelings of obligation, fear, and guilt. Manipulators use these feelings to control you and get you to do things that only benefit them. If you think that you are in some form of a manipulative relationship, look for these signs that your friend, partner, or co-work might be manipulating you.
They Play with Your Emotions
One of the easiest ways for someone to manipulate you is through your emotions. A manipulator will try to use your feelings, especially jealousy, and fear, to influence you and your decisions. In many cases, they might even try to use information that you told them in confidence to play with your emotions.
They Make You the Bad Partner or Friend
To manipulate you, someone might try to make you out to be a bad partner or friend. In these cases, they might try to get you to do them a favor by saying that you never do anything for them or that you are never there to support them while they always support you. If you find yourself in a situation like this, take a step back and ask yourself when was the last time they supported you without expecting anything in return. Suppose you have trouble coming up with specific instances. In that case, they might be manipulating you, and it might be time to end the relationship that you have with them.
They Are Passive-Aggressive
One of the common ways that people manipulate you is through passive aggression. When this happens, someone will purposely do things that upset or annoy you and claim that they didn’t know that it bothered you. This method of passive-aggressiveness is a way to not only expressing anger but can also be a way of exerting control. Sometimes manipulators will use passive-aggressive comments to control you emotionally.
They Act Ignorant
If you try to address this manipulative behavior that someone has, they might try to act ignorant of the situation. In these cases, the manipulator will deny that they are manipulating you or will pretend not to know what you are talking about. By denying their manipulation or pretending not to know what you are talking about, they are working to regain control over the situation and are putting the blame back on you. Acting ignorant is a common way that manipulators will try to make you seem like a bad friend or partner.
They Destroy Your Confidence
In order to keep you under their control, manipulations will destroy your confidence. They do this so that you will be more dependent on them and will do more things to benefit them to feel validated or loved. Manipulators will destroy your confidence through passive-aggressive or backhanded comments. Manipulators will specifically target your perceived weaknesses to make you feel worse about yourself. They might also systematically insult your strengths to make you doubt your strengths and positive qualities.
In many instances, these signs of a manipulator will work together. If you think you are being manipulated, seek help, and remove yourself from that relationship as soon as possible.