Last week, I had the great pleasure of journeying with one of my favourite brilliant minds, Dr. Sam Vaknin. We covered quite a bit of ground. I very much admire the life’s work of Dr Sam. In addition to being extremely intelligent, he is highly decorated with certifications, awards, and is regarded an authority in psychopathy.
On a personal level, Dr. Sam’s teachings were very helpful during my recovery journey. When someone is targeted for psychological warfare, they are conditioned to betray the Self. Over time, the target becomes a shell of a person, genuinely believes everything is their fault, and becomes a people pleaser in hopes of being chosen (the ideal person/partner/child for another human being). This type of warfare is called conditioning. Targets are conditioned to act in a certain way. This process (can) take years to accomplish.
It can also take years to address and correct.
A recovery journey can be filled with many moments to question reality AND sanity. Doing The Work is not easy, glamorous, or linear. Self-care is not only bubble baths, positive thoughts, and dancing in the sun. The Journey is filled with moments to yell PLOT TWIST, cry until you can no longer see straight, sleepless nights, rabbit holes, emotional outbursts, fear of trusting the wrong person, and simply feel like a complete and utter failure.
Every single person is exposed to some sort of trauma. Sometimes trauma can break you and sometimes it can make you stronger. The art of psychological warfare is when a completely broken person decides to disrupt (or play with) others to avoid dealing with themselves. Sometimes it’s a conscious decision and other times it is unconscious. Our discussion covers all things from narcissism to mental health. Coping methods to community. Realities. Health Care and Society Systems. Sacred spaces and beyond.
Please visit Dr. Sam’s YouTube page. He posts videos on a daily basis, most topics revolve around understanding the mind of a narcissist. Considering narcissism and narcissistic abuse are on the rise, it’s always a sound idea to familiarise yourself with the topic. Knowledge is power.
We hope you gain useful insights in the discussion. Thank you for listening. Please feel free to share with someone you care about… It’s not every day a survivor of psychological warfare has the great pleasure to speak with the top authority on the subject matter. Truly a gift. I very much enjoyed this discussion.