Are you dealing with jealousy in your friendships, acquaintances, or even co-workers? It’s a common emotion that can drive us to be our best selves, but it can also turn into toxic behaviour. Licensed therapist Ginger Dean in an Instagram post warned that when jealousy gets out of control, it can lead to sociopathic behaviour. This is where individuals lack empathy, manipulate others, and do not care about anyone else’s feelings.
Jealousy in small doses can be a positive motivator. It is good to push us to work harder and achieve our goals. But when it runs wild, that is when it can become a serious problem. It can lead to harmful behaviours that can negatively impact our relationships and personal lives. If you’re experiencing jealousy in your relationships or even at work, it’s important to pay attention to your intuition and how you feel around the person.
According to Ginger Dean, sociopathic behaviour is a whole new level of toxicity that should not be normalized or brushed aside. It involves stalking, harassing, sabotaging, gaslighting, lying, and manipulating others to maintain control or power over a situation or person. If you notice any of these behaviours in someone around you, it’s important to take a step back and re-evaluate the relationship.
Copy Paste Aspects Of Your Life: These harmful acquaintances tend to imitate different aspects of your life in order to use them as a facade. The purpose of this is to present themselves as someone they’re not. These copycats will replicate your actions and behaviour to draw attention or recognition to themselves, without putting in the necessary effort. Their lack of self-identity leads them to believe that copying you is sufficient for them to feel validated.
Unhealthy Competition: Even if it’s just in their thoughts, these individuals engage in a form of competition with you. This persistent comparison creates a harmful pattern where they feel the need to consistently prove themselves or bring others down in order to boost their own self-esteem.
Needless Nagging: They use backhanded compliments to put you down and make you feel insecure. This manipulation tactic is often used in toxic friendships and is intended to make the person giving the backhanded compliment feel superior and powerful by bringing down their friends, colleagues, or associates.
Love Bombing And Overly Excitable: They engage in a superficial friendship where they love bomb you and behave overly excited about your friendship. However, this is done to keep tabs on you and suppress your success or happiness. They copy your behaviour and nurse resentment towards you while hiding their true feelings.
Gossiping: They gossip about you behind your back and manipulate others to turn against you. This is a fawning response as they are afraid of the conflict they harbour in their minds about you. You may not be aware that they are doing this, but your intuition can tell you the truth.
Surveillance vs support: They keep a watchful eye on you as they battle conflicting and disruptive feelings about you in their minds. They may distance themselves from you to avoid feeling jealous and envious while claiming that there is something wrong with you.
Gaslighting: They ally themselves with your enemies and then gaslight you if you confront them about it. This is a passive-aggressive tactic meant to confuse and manipulate you, making you more vulnerable to their actions.
A post shared by Ginger Dean | Licensed Psychotherapist (@lovingmeafterwe)
While it’s natural to feel jealous from time to time, it’s important to recognize when it’s becoming harmful and address it before it escalates. Don’t let jealousy turn into sociopathic behaviour and negatively impact your life.
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