A toxic person can be found in any sphere of life; be it relationships, career and money, parenting and family, or even dating. Whatever form they take, a toxic person can make living life significantly harder. These are ten red flags which can help you identify if you’re dealing with a toxic person.
1. They Make Everything About Themselves: When this person talks, it’s almost always about themselves. They don’t take an interest in anyone else is doing or feeling, and conversations are always about them and their problems.
2. They Make You Feel Uncomfortable: Toxic people have an uncanny ability to make other people feel wrong or uncomfortable. Whether you’re being belittled or forced into agreeing with them, these interactions will often make you feel small.
3. Jealousy & Possessiveness: Toxic people are often jealous of the attention you give to others and may want to possess you so that you can only focus your attention on them. They will get insecure when you talk to other people and try to stop you from interacting with anyone else.
4. Guilt Trips and Blame Shifting: Toxic people will often use guilt trips and blame shifting as manipulation tactics, as they are quick to make excuses or place the blame onto other people. Rather than taking responsibility for their actions, they will look to point out your flaws or shortcomings instead.
5. Controlling Behaviour: It's easy to spot someone exhibiting controlling behaviour such as checking who you’re speaking to, when you’ll be home and wanting to know who all your friends are. A person engaging in overly controlling, restrictive behaviours should definitely be seen as a warning sign.
6. Lying and Exaggeration: If you’re dealing with a toxic person, chances are they will lie or exaggerate to make themselves look better or you look worse. If you notice that they seem to change the facts and stories they tell, or cover up details, this is a warning sign.
7. Isolating You: A toxic person might try to isolate you from your family and friends, trying their best to get you to spend all your time with them, and pushing you away from everyone else. This is often done to increase the control they have over you.
8. Criticism and Negativity: Toxic people have a few negative traits and one of them is constantly being critical. They are never happy with your successes, undermining your efforts and always putting you down.
9. Taking More Than Giving: If someone is constantly taking more than giving, this can be indicative of a toxic relationship. A totally one-sided dynamic like this would mean that the other person has no respect or regard for your needs — after all a true relationship is based on mutual respect and trust.
10. Power Struggles: A power struggle is always taking place with a toxic person, as they always want to be right and they need to win every argument. As soon as you disagree with them, a battle begins and they will never back down.
Dealing with a toxic person requires great resilience, but if you pay close attention to these red flags then you can identify them early and avoid them altogether. If you’ve already been pulled in, then your only option is to tackle it head-on—for the sake of your mental health and wellbeing.
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