The disastrous effects of being lost in the FOG are confusion, crazy-making, people-pleasing, and an erosion of boundaries. When a person is being manipulated, they have a hard time figuring out who has the problem, what is normal, what is problematic, and if their wants, needs, and feelings are valid. The FOG is one of the main reasons that people stay "stuck" in abusive relationships for so long, why they continue to get involved with abusive people, why they feel they are the problem, and why they tend to feel that the abuse is somehow their fault. There is no shortage of people with well-intended bad advice out there who unintentionally fall into the FOG as well and push targets of abuse into keeping the relationship going. However, this type of destructive manipulation isn't just limited to narcissists and sociopaths. These three emotions are often how narcissists, sociopaths, and other types of emotional manipulators go about controlling others. The FOG is an acronym that stands for "Fear, Obligation, and Guilt".
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