A Subtle Warning Sign of A Toxic Person

The Department of Homeland Security has a color-coded terrorism alert system. Red, the highest level, means a severe risk of terrorist attacks. The lowest level, green, means low risk of terrorist attacks. Between those are Blue (guarded risk), yellow (significant) and then there is orange (high). There is a lesser known and very subtle early warning sign you may be dating a toxic person that you never hear about. It’s not quite the level of a red alert, but it is definitely in the orange to the red range and it should put you on high alert that you are in danger of being at the very least, emotionally abused, by a toxic person, narcissist or sociopath. It’s a tactic called Subtle Ignoring. It is generally a precursor to full-blown narcissistic abuse.

The “Good” In “Goodbye”

We’ve all heard the old adage, “Life is a delicate balance of learning when to hold on and when to let go.” More times than not, we’re reminded of this when facing a turning point in our lives.

Change has been quipped to be the only constant in life. It is a necessary component of any form of growth, learning and aging. Often times change includes letting go or saying goodbye to people, places or situations that we’ve loved dearly and for which we hold sentimental value.

Closing The Door On Closure

 

Throughout our lives, we’ve all likely had a shared experience of having a certain person (or maybe a few) who have wronged us, cheated on us or betrayed our trust in ways that render us different people.

The very thought of that person’s name can conjure feelings of anger and bitterness that leave us tense with frustration as we seem unable to let go of the resentment we feel toward them.

Warning Signs & Stages of Toxic Relationships

If you haven’t been exposed to a toxic relationship with a Narcissist or Sociopath, then you probably have no interest in learning about the conscience deficient 4 percent of the population that Dr. Martha Stout describes in her fascinating book, The Sociopath Next Door. But f you haven’t learned to spot the early warning signs, red flags and the three distinct stages of a toxic relationship, then you might be at risk of falling into one of these loveless torture traps. According to Dr. Stout, clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, 4% of the population are sociopaths and don’t possess a conscience. According to research studies, 1%-4% of the population meets the criteria for Narcissistic Personality disorder with is characterized by a lack of empathy.

That may not sound like much, but using the world’s population currently estimated at 7.4 billion, that means that 4 percent equals approximately 385 million people who are without a conscience, not including a large number of people living on the planet who lack empathy. Unless people learn how to spot these personality types, so many will continue to fall prey to the emotional, psychological, spiritual and sometimes financial destruction they cause.