We’ve heard about this statement over and over again: “red flags” in a relationship. But what does this term mean exactly? And what are some red flags early on in the relationship? This article will answer those questions and talk about early red flags you might ignore in a relationship simply because their immediate effect cannot be felt until you’ve gotten to the deep end of the toxic relationship — and now, you’re wondering how you got there.

As they say, prevention is better than cure, and knowing these rarely-talked-about and cunning red flags is just a step for you to avoid being entrapped in toxic relationship patterns and attract your life partner.

https://biiedwin.gumroad.com/l/NavigatingtheStormofNarcissisticAbuse

What are the Four Red Flags to Watch Out for in a Relationship?

1. Constantly Apologizing
The first red flag is if you find yourself constantly apologizing, sometimes even for no reason at all. Let me explain one thing here: this has nothing to do with saying that apologizing is not the right thing to do. But when you find “sorry” as your word of the day, then you’ve got to pause and ask yourself why you are doing that.

You might tend to apologize excessively even when you are not in the wrong because you are willing to do anything to please your new partner, as they’ve made you feel like everything is always your fault. We develop the habit of constantly apologizing and even feel the need to do so to avoid conflict or the negative consequences that will come about if we don’t apologize.

This leads to us developing a false sense of unworthiness or unimportance, and our opinions do not matter. We also end up losing trust in ourselves and our intuition, and this, in turn, keeps us from seeing things as they are in the relationship.

2. You Cannot Be Honest with Your Partner
The second red flag you might ignore is when you cannot be honest with your partner. Early on in the relationship, you might be afraid of opening up simply because every time we try to openly express our inner thoughts and feelings, we get shut down or our feelings are invalidated.

If you find yourself feeling like you have to be dishonest to get along, then that is a red flag to watch out for. It’s good to ask yourself what the price of your honesty will be. We may all have unique reasons for why we withhold information from each other, but mostly it’s because of the fear of humiliation or disappointment.

In a toxic relationship, you develop a habit of being dishonest simply because you are afraid of their reaction, as they might lash out at you, criticize you, or even ignore you, which is really painful. The most important thing to note is if you find yourself constantly lying to protect yourself, then you are in an unhealthy relationship, and investing in it wouldn’t be worthwhile.

3. Isolation
The third red flag is if you find yourself being driven towards isolation from your friends and family as well as the outside world. This may happen so cunningly and slowly, and you may view it positively, especially when your new partner tells you that they’re doing it so that you can spend quality time together.

I do agree, this may have a positive effect early on as you build the relationship, but it is a double-edged sword as they may be isolating you from your support network and the things you enjoy. This game is played so slowly and subtly in such a way that you lose your sense of reality and identity as they start controlling your life.

https://biiedwin.gumroad.com/l/NavigatingtheStormofNarcissisticAbuse

A narcissist will not directly force you away from spending quality time with your loved ones or your hobbies, but they will use gaslighting statements that make you question your sense of reality. They may say something like: —

“See! I told you that your friends are misleading you,”
“Your family doesn’t like me, you either choose me or them,”
“You don’t need to find a job; I will sort everything out,”
“You have poor taste in hobbies — who does that?”.

Simply put, isolation is all about cutting you off from the things that nourish your life and might either take your attention away from the toxic relationship or eliminate those who might support you against them once you realize exactly what you’re dealing with.

4. Provoking Jealousy
The last red flag you should watch out for is when they constantly provoke you to be jealous of them by bragging about how every guy or lady wants to be with them.

They intentionally do this so that you constantly doubt yourself, feel low in confidence, and become afraid of losing them. This is a subtle controlling behavior, and you will find yourself compromising on things you’re not supposed to as you fight to win them back. The relationship for you now becomes like a competition with other outside parties, and that should not be the case.

Toxic people do this because they want you to chase them and feel like they have control over you. You will find yourself constantly trying to change your appearance to outwit the perceived sense of competition for your new partner. That is a huge red flag, indicating you should disengage from the relationship. A relationship is a partnership and not a contest.

Conclusion

So, if you keep ignoring these red flags early on, you will keep attracting toxic relationship patterns into your life. And yes, spotting the red flags is not enough to keep you away from narcissistic relationships, as some of them happen so subtly and cunningly that even the brightest of us will fall for it.

We might see them but still cling to the hope that things will change, and as time goes by, you find yourself at the deep end of the tunnel where you now feel it’s impossible to get out. That’s why it’s good to learn how to trust your intuitions, honor your boundaries, and know when to say no or walk away when we spot the red flags in the early stages of a relationship.

Note from the Author

If you’re ready and you’d like my help with healing, finding peace in life and breaking free from these toxic patterns (in less than 2 months) , then you can book a FREE BREAKTHROUGH CALL with me HERE. Happy healing 💙💙. Feel free to share and comment! Use this information with caution, it comes from my own thoughts & bias, experiences and research😊.