Number 8: Steering clear of skin care regimens
When you are going through narcissistic abuse, you may find yourself steering clear of your skin care routine even when you see acne or irritation breaking out. It’s not that you don’t care about your skin, but the emotional burden of the abuse will make you feel like taking care of yourself is something you cannot accomplish.
As psychologist Dr. Andrea Bonior describes, avoiding self-care generally means that you’re too preoccupied with keeping yourself alive emotionally to worry about what happens outside. You may feel too exhausted to continue with your skin care or think that you don’t deserve such care anymore. It’s as if your mindset controls what you focus on your health, and during a period of emotional crisis, your skin is just another thing to be ignored.
Number 9: Using too much hand sanitizer
You’re using way too much hand sanitizer, like it’s some sort of magic elixir that will protect you from all the negative energies surrounding you. After dealing with narcissistic abuse, it can feel like everything is contaminated, and slathering on that goo becomes a way to cope with the chaos in your life. According to therapist Dr. John Amodeo, this kind of excessive sanitizing can be a way to regain control when everything else feels out of whack. So, you’re pumping that sanitizer like it’s your new best friend, and who can blame you? It’s just a little bottle of instant relief.
Number 10: Excessive use of deodorant
When you’re going through narcissistic abuse, you may use more deodorant than necessary, as if you’re attempting to mask something other than body odor. This could be due to anxiety or feelings of insecurity, and using deodorant as a way to mask it. Dr. Ramani Durvasula, clinical psychologist and narcissism expert, describes how abuse makes you over-sensitive to what others are going to judge or criticize you for. Therefore, applying more deodorant is something that may feel like a way of cushioning yourself from judgment or criticism. Even if it’s just a small aspect of your daily life, it’s less about being clean, it’s more about attempting to regain control and comfort in a situation that often feels beyond your control.
Narcissistic abuse can assault our cleanliness in some extraordinary ways. It’s less about feeling sad or overwhelmed, it can create a lot of the behaviors we might not even realize we’ve developed. Our self-care is pushed to the side in attempting to make sense of the emotional chaos. Great news, though: recognizing these effects is the first step towards regaining control. Knowing how narcissistic abuse has manipulated our daily routines allows us to begin making adjustments, whether establishing small self-care milestones or enlisting friends or professionals for assistance. We can regain our hygiene and, better yet, our health.
Read More: 6 Signs You’re The One Supply Narcissist Couldn’t Replace
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