…And how do you protect yourself from this type of manipulation?
An Emotional Invalidation is a form of emotional abuse. It’s the act of intentionally hurting or belittling someone’s feelings and beliefs.
Emotional invalidation occurs when a person uses their position of power to tell you that your feelings don’t matter or that you’re wrong about how you feel. For example: “You shouldn’t be sad and depressed—you’re only being dramatic.” Or: “You should be more excited about this opportunity—it’s amazing.”
Another form of emotional invalidation is telling someone how to feel instead of listening to what they’re saying. For example: “I know how you feel” instead of “I hear you.” You might also use phrases like “That’s not true” or “That can’t be true.”
When someone tells you your feelings are wrong or invalid, they say that what you feel isn’t real. They tell you something is wrong with you because of who you are or what your needs are. This kind of invalidation is particularly damaging because it can make you feel like there’s something wrong with your identity as a person—like somehow there’s something wrong with what makes YOU a person!
How do you protect yourself from this type of manipulation?
Emotional invalidation can be especially harmful because it prevents the victim from expressing their true thoughts and feelings—which is why it’s essential to learn how to deal with it!
• Be aware.
The first step to avoiding emotional invalidation is to understand that it happens. It’s a common occurrence in our society, and you’re not alone if you’ve ever experienced it.
• Recognize the invalidation.
The next step is to learn how to recognize when the invalidation is happening and how to stop it from happening again.
• Acceptance.
Accept yourself with all of your flaws, insecurities and failures—and know that it’s okay.
• Be calm.
When someone invalidates your feelings, ask them to explain or justify their response instead of trying to argue with them.
We must remember that there will always be people who will invalidate us. However, we can improve our confidence by knowing our worth. Therefore, be encouraging and compassionate towards yourself.
Know that our worth does not depend on anybody’s views or opinions.
It is also helpful to surround ourselves with caring and sympathetic people.
Are you struggling with emotional invalidation?
Reach out to meet with me personally, for a 90-minute Life & Love Transformation session. Let’s get to the root of the issues and discuss the solutions to starting your Healing Journey to Creating the Life You Desire & Having the Love You Deserve!
Get details here – https://RianaMilne.com/session.