What is your understanding of the term "gaslighting"?

JaniceM said:
"What you heard is not what I said"
"The way you experienced something.. is not the way it really happened"

etc.

but like the old saying, a person can't really get the full impact of it unless they were there.
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When I was a teenager and still living at the house, my mother literally stated "not everyone had the happy home life you did." Not only was this a severe delusion on my mother's part, it was total gaslighting to me. Just one example. Of course I said nothing. You can't with a psychotic mind like that.
 

Remy said:
When I was a teenager and still living at the house, my mother literally stated "not everyone had the happy home life you did." Not only was this a severe delusion on my mother's part, it was total gaslighting to me. Just one example. Of course I said nothing. You can't with a psychotic mind like that.
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Oh you're absolutely right with that.
 
Remy said:
I only heard of the definition a few short years ago. And I realized how many times it was used on me as an abused child. I was the problem. The screaming raging abusing adult was all fine.

It's a real and damaging form of abuse. But agree, it's become overused.
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I'm sorry to hear that. My folks actually believed that I knew what I was talking about, and that I wouldn't lie to them. This was probably rooted in cultural traditions, where no one thought that family members would lie to each other. And so therefore they mostly didn't, and this created a positive feedback loop of mutual trust.

It's only now that I realize how important this has been to me.
 

It is a term to make you doubt your "reality" (eg that is your interpretation; that did not happen; a silent treatment; or "you are blowing this incident out of proportion")
 
JaniceM said:
Oh you'd be surprised.. and not in a good way. There are all different tactics that can cause that kind of thing to work.
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It brings not only a negative response from me, but often a punitive one, as well.

I mean, clearly gaslighting is *malicious* in intent: it's not a mistake or a misunderstand--although they'll try to wriggle off with those as excuses. They *know* that I have first-hand experience of X, and to stand there and tell me that I didn't see/do that is clearly an attempt at either beating me down (personal submission) and/or manipulation fofr the benefit of the gaslighter.

I hope I never do anything remotely like this to anyone, even if I don't like themr
 
Sawfish said:
It brings not only a negative response from me, but often a punitive one, as well.

I mean, clearly gaslighting is *malicious* in intent: it's not a mistake or a misunderstand--although they'll try to wriggle off with those as excuses. They *know* that I have first-hand experience of X, and to stand there and tell me that I didn't see/do that is clearly an attempt at either beating me down (personal submission) and/or manipulation fofr the benefit of the gaslighter.

I hope I never do anything remotely like this to anyone, even if I don't like themr
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EDIT: By god, this reminds me: if I edit for correction/addition, from this point forward I need to note this publicly...
 
Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation in which a person or group makes someone question their sanity, memory, or perception of events. This is often done in order to gain and maintain power and control over the victim. The term comes from a 1938 stage play and 1944 film called "Gas Light," in which a husband manipulates his wife into thinking she is going insane.

Courtesy of ChatGPT :ROFLMAO:
 
I really like Patrick Teahan's channel. As an abused child and now therapist, he really gets it. Here a so called parent tried to gaslight him as to why their child went no contact. I concept I wish I had utilized. That "you're not perfect" "you think you're perfect" "no one is perfect" perfect thing is real big with abusers. My mother used it and it comes up a lot on the abuse forum I go to.
https://youtube.com/shorts/8q28IfHJtbM?feature=share
 
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