How Do I Know If I'm Being Manipulated By My Adult Child?

Are you feeling overwhelmed, constantly anxious, or guilty in your interactions with your adult child? You might be experiencing manipulation. In this essential video, we delve into the subtle signs of emotional, financial, and behavioral manipulation that many moms face with their adult children. We'll explore what it feels like to be manipulated, from the emotional toll it takes to the confusion and guilt that often accompany these challenging dynamics. Discover strategies to identify common manipulative tactics such as guilt-tripping, gaslighting, and financial leverage. Learn how to set firm boundaries, encourage healthy independence, and protect your financial and emotional well-being. We provide practical tips for recognizing the signs of manipulation, understanding the impact on your personal health, and taking decisive steps to counteract manipulative behaviors. This video is a must-watch for any mom seeking to understand more about manipulation in parent-adult child relationships and looking for ways to foster healthier interactions. Watch now to gain the insights and tools you need to navigate these complex situations with confidence and clarity. Subscribe to our channel for more insights on managing family relationships and ensuring your well-being amidst challenging dynamics. Watch now and start reclaiming your peace of mind and strengthening your family relationships.

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Are you a mom that is asking yourselfthe question, am I being manipulated?
Am I being played here?
I think we've all askedourselves that question.
If you're watching this video, it'shighly likely you have asked yourself
that question because we don't want tobelieve that that's really happening.
We don't want to believe thatthat's the truth, but in your
situation, it just might be the case.

(00:21):
And so today I want to diveinto four signs of manipulation.
I
want to start by saying.
that I think personally that theemotional manipulation is the most
difficult for a mother and we wantto see the best in our child, right?

(00:42):
We don't want to believe thatthey're purposefully hurting us,
purposefully manipulating us.
There's a lot of reasons why peoplemanipulate and I have other videos
out there for that, but I want tojust talk about four reasons today.
So firstly, number one isthe common tactics, right?
Because if you ever feel like youcan never say no without a severe

(01:06):
repercussion or maybe it's going toturn into some explosive argument, if
you don't go along to get along in thatsituation, whatever that situation may be.
Maybe you're even fearing that therewill be an emotional withdrawal.
Right?
These are the things that typicallyhappen when you're being manipulated.

(01:27):
And in this case by your child.
If you think back, you cantypically trace that back to some
conversation that wasn't their ideal.
And it's pretty easy to do onceyou really start thinking about it.
One of the biggest things is,does your child play the victim?
Right?
Maybe they're playing the victim togain sympathy from you and manipulate

(01:47):
different situations for their benefit.
So, this is very common.
And it doesn't mean it'salways going to be this way.
I can promise you that.
But you do need to knowand educate yourself.
You need to think about guilt tripping,gaslighting, or like I said, playing
the victim because that will empoweryou to recognize when this is happening.

(02:07):
And I think sometimes we too quicklyas a society, too quickly label a
behavior or diagnose someone withsomething because they have a behavior.
But I do encourage you to see a trendbefore you start thinking that way.
So number two is financial manipulation.
This is a big one and super supercommon because you're probably going

(02:29):
to feel Anxiety when you start thinkingabout withdrawing whether you're maybe
you're an enabler and They continue tomanipulate you and you have this fear
around that You probably are going tofeel that anxiety and also You may fear
that your child's going to resent you ifyou choose to not have boundaries around
the finances So I think a lot of momscontinue to enable because they fear

(02:52):
that the child's going to walk away.
And I, I know how difficult it can be, butit is a choice like so many other things.
And if what you're currently doingis not working and it hasn't been
working for a long time, then manytimes you need to challenge yourself.
I think it's time to try option B or C.

(03:13):
Right.
Again, each situation is so, so different.
So I'm not here on this video to tellyou what to do without having any
idea of your specific circumstance.
So for those of you moms that are,have been navigating this journey,
whether you're estranged or you're justnavigating just a tough relationship,
it's really, could be, maybe it's toxic.
Maybe there's just a lot of thingsgoing on and you're just really

(03:35):
unsure of how to handle things.
If you're ready to start diving inand start taking care of you and
learn all the tools and all thetechniques that Then I want you to
reach out via the discovery call link.
It's a pin comment.
It's also in the description.
I would love to hear from youfor a 30 minute consultation.
It's not a coaching call.
So please know that this isto learn more about coaching.

(03:56):
So I'd love to talk to you.
Thirdly is dependency issues.
So you may feel that your childrelies excessively on you for the
emotional, the financial, right?
You and I both know that thisis limiting their independence.
And so I think that they want itsometimes because they can depend on

(04:19):
you and not have to either work or puta plan together for their own future.
So that should tell you something.
Something is stopping them.
People do not, people don't just notwant to move forward for no reason.
But we want to encourage them tomake those decisions for themselves.
If you look at every time whereyou save the day, for them.

(04:41):
Think about what that looks like.
Think about that as an intervention,like you're intervening
every time you save the day.
Maybe your child isn't asking youfor money, but maybe they're relying
on you for all their decisions,their emotional support, again,
limiting their own independence.
So then they have no self esteembecause they are not thinking

(05:03):
that they're even capable of doingsomething great on their own.
They've never done it becausemaybe you've done it for them.
So they have no idea that that's possible.
The reality is I think thatevery mom knows deep down
when she's being manipulated.
We've all been there at somepoint or another in some capacity.
So we've all been manipulatedby various people.

(05:26):
Might, it might not have even beenyour child in other cases, right?
So over a period of time, whenyou start to see a pattern,
then it becomes easier to spot.
But your job, your job is to stop becauseif you're teaching your son or daughter
that this is okay and this is how totreat you, you're honestly teaching

(05:47):
them how to treat themselves and others.
So life is not easy.
Your situation might be reallycomplicated right now, but this will
have an impact on your own life as well.
If you're not careful, youthink you're just helping them.
But really what you're doing is you aregoing to end up having chronic stress,

(06:08):
anxiety, maybe even depression becauseyou've allowed this to go on too long.
And it's time to take care of you as well.
So if that's you, I would love totalk to you in that discovery call.
But until then, God bless.
See you in the next video.