Spot the Narcissist Videos are very informative, and I watch all the new ones as they come up. I have gotten behind in the past couple of weeks, so I am catching up this morning.
This video is about sleeping… In the early days of toxic abuse from tenants in the workplace in 2016, I ended up with insomnia that even sleeping pills didn’t help. My doctor tried various pills, but nothing worked as I couldn’t shut my brain off. All their recrimination went round and round in my head, trying to make sense of them.
The only thing that worked for me was to get my sense of safety back, and that took moving, far, far away. Since I moved from Ontario home to Newfoundland & Labrador in Sept 2020, I have had no more sleepless nights! No sleeping pills either.
Knowing I have over 3000 kms, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence, preventing them from getting to me physically, helps quite a bit too!
I appreciate that not everyone can move away and start over. I always planned on moving back to NL when hubby and I were retired from working, we just did it a few years earlier than we expected. NL is our home, and it is where we want to be.
Why Narcissistic Abuse Victims Struggle to Sleep (The Hidden Cause) 💤
Why do victims of narcissistic abuse struggle to sleep?
It’s not just stress—it’s a deeply rooted psychological and physiological effect of prolonged manipulation and emotional trauma. Here’s what really happens:
- 1️⃣ Hypervigilance Never Stops – Victims are constantly on edge, as if danger is always around the corner.
- 2️⃣ Anxiety & Overthinking Take Over – Their mind replays past arguments, gaslighting, and manipulation.
- 3️⃣ CPTSD Symptoms Disrupt Rest – Flashbacks, nightmares, and panic attacks make deep sleep impossible.
- 4️⃣ Emotional Exhaustion Feels Like Insomnia – The body is drained, but the mind refuses to shut down.
- 5️⃣ Fear of Relaxation – Years of walking on eggshells make relaxation feel unsafe or even foreign.
- 6️⃣ Unconscious Conditioning from Abuse – The brain associates nighttime with confrontation, tension, or loneliness.
- 7️⃣ Depression Alters Sleep Patterns – Some sleep too much, others barely sleep at all, caught in a cycle of despair.
- 8️⃣ Broken Circadian Rhythms – The body’s sleep-wake cycle is thrown off due to chronic stress and emotional abuse.
- 9️⃣ Lingering Fight-or-Flight Mode – Adrenaline spikes at night, making restful sleep nearly impossible
- 🔟 Isolation & Lack of Comfort – Many victims suffer alone, without a safe space to truly rest.
Video Timeline
- WHY NARCISSISTIC ABUSE VICTIMS STRUGGLE TO SLEEP (THE HIDDEN CAUSE) NUMBER 1 INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 01:00
- NUMBER 2 CORTISOL SPIKES 02:34
- NUMBER 3 NIGHTMARES 03:59
- NUMBER 4 INSOMNIA 05:25
- NUMBER 5 HYPERAWARENESS OF NOISE 06:49
- NUMBER 6 ISOLATION AT NIGHT 08:19
- NUMBER 7 HORMONAL IMBALANCE 09:52
- NUMBER 8 SHIFTING SLEEP PATTERNS 11:15