Have the last laugh(DW# 795)
Jul 10, 2020
As we conclude the series on emotional abuse, let us just remind ourselves that regardless of other people’s behaviour, we can still choose how to respond to it.
With support, with increased emotional awareness, by learning to identify and call out the gaslighting, we can learn to validate ourselves. When others challenge our perception, we can choose to ignore them. We can work against adopting the self-doubt that is so crippling in emotionally abusive tactics such as gaslighting. We can practice reminding ourselves that despite the challenges we are currently experiencing, we have the resources to emerge stronger.
Let us look at what happens in the last scene of the movie Gaslight:
Paula, realizing that her husband Gregory has been manipulating her and intentionally trying to drive her crazy, turns the tables on him. In the final scene, Gregory has been caught and tied to a chair by police. When Paula enters the room, he instructs her to get a knife and cut him loose. But this time his wife uses his tactics back on him. Paula gaslights him by pretending that there is no knife! She acts as if she is too mentally ill — a reality that he has constructed for her — to carry out his instructions.
How delicious is such revenge to watch :)
Of course, most situations are not so extreme. However, we can still get "revenge" by healing ourselves, becoming stronger and living our best lives.
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