Narcissistic Abuse Recovery: 10-Step Plan to Take Back Control of Your Life
“Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
So, you found yourself involved with a toxic narcissist, and before you knew it, you were fully enmeshed and dealing with the full spectrum of mental and emotional abuse that is so common of a narc.
By now, you’ve realized that chances for the narcissist to change and become a less damaged version of him/her self is unlikely – maybe even impossible.
Whether you’re still working on a way to get out or you’ve already left, you’ve got a long road ahead of you when it comes to recovery. One of the biggest hurdles is sort of “reprogramming your brain” in order to let go of the poisonous thoughts and beliefs that the narc’s emotional and mental torture have almost certainly left behind.
It’s time to empower yourself!
When you were actively engaging with the narcissist, you probably eventually stopped trying to make choices of your own. That’s because by doing so, you may have found yourself the victim of added gaslighting and other kinds of covert abuse – maybe even less than covert.
But now that you’ve left, or are planning to leave, you’ve got to learn to choose your own path – and that can begin by simply deciding what you want and then taking the steps you want to get there – simple as that.
Still, when things don’t go your way, do you know how to deal? Can you cope with the hard times on your own?
Ask yourself this: When life isn’t going your way, do you empower yourself to make improvements?
Most people are great at getting themselves worked up into a state that’s anything but empowering, and when you’ve been abused by a narcissist, the effects of PTSD can become overwhelming. When things get challenging, we need all of our resources if we’re really going to turn things around.
We all have the power to overcome our negative thinking and emotions. And we all have the power to bring about positive change in our lives.
As you go about your recovery process, there are some really simple steps you can take that will help you to regain some control over your life.
1. Be assertive. Because we’ve been abused by these toxic people, many of us have become too passive to ever accomplish anything significant. I’ve learned the hard way that sometimes you have to declare what you want. Sometimes you have to say ‘no’ to others. You don’t have to be selfish, but there’s nothing wrong with making a decision and then making it happen.
2. Make a list of your 10 greatest strengths. Now think of ways that you can leverage them to your advantage. If you’re going to take back control of your life quickly, you’ll probably need your strengths to accomplish it.
3. It’s also worthwhile to think about your 10 greatest weaknesses. These are commonly the things that get us into trouble. What you can do to reduce the impact of your weaknesses?
4. Stop making excuses. Excuses limit you and prevent you from taking charge of the situation. If you can take responsibility, you can change the situation. Excuses give you a justification for being passive. If you believe that something is outside of your control, you also believe that you can’t do anything to change it.
5. Get more sleep. Most people simply don’t sleep enough to be at their best. Studies have shown that most people experience improved mood, clarity of thought, and increased energy if they increase their sleep by one hour per night. Turn off the TV and go to bed an hour earlier.
6. Do the most important things first. Spend the first hour or two each morning on the most important tasks you have for the day. Your focus and energy will be at their greatest.
7. Decide which area of your life would have the greatest impact if improved. Focus on the one area of your life that will make the biggest difference. If you’re already making $1 million a year, making more money probably isn’t going to have a great impact on your life.
8. Forget about expectations. The whole world seems to tell us what we should be doing. What would you do if you were free of all of those expectations? Choose for yourself for a change.
9. Figure out what’s holding you back. Why aren’t you already living your life the way you choose? What’s preventing you? What are you afraid of? What can you do to work around these challenges? Develop a plan to get past this resistance.
10. Make the necessary changes. After all of the above steps, you know what you need to do. It’s time to do what needs to be done. Take action.
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Take back control of your life NOW! You’ll feel like there’s nothing you can’t do. The world is just sitting there, patiently waiting for you to take control of your life. Get started today by taking the first steps. A few steps each day become quite significant very quickly.
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