End Manipulation & Compliance © Martyn Carruthers

Are you enmeshed in the difficult relationships and painful emotions
often called emotional blackmail? Contact us to start untangling your life.

Emotional Blackmail is Emotional Abuse!

Blackmail is motivated by a need to manipulate or control, often by people who claim good intentions. Some victims of emotional blackmail may perceive being abused as normal, although all forms of abuse have heavy relationship consequences.

We help people understand emotional abuse, protect themselves from emotional blackmail, triangulation and over-diagnosis by therapists. We help people find relief and emotional freedom.

People who abuse or manipulate others may be unable to enjoy healthy relationships until they accept and assimilate their inner demons.
Contact us if you want to change.

Emotional blackmail includes excessive demands, punishment for normal behavior, unwanted displays of attachment (love), withholding affection or care and threats of humiliation. The damage caused by this emotional abuse often manifests as dysfunctional relationship habits and suffering.

My mother told me many times that she only conceived me so that I would
look after her in her old age, and that if I leave her – she will suicide. I am 24.

Like emotional incest, emotional blackmail often indicates dependence by people who are preoccupied with control. Often, the real victims of this abuse are children. If you have had enough of this in your family, let’s work together to end the craziness and regain your freedom!

Mother’s Boys . Father-Daughter Issues . Parental Alienation

Where are you Now?

I composed this simple table of relationship behavior many years ago.

Healthy Relationship	Relationship in Crisis
They often show appreciation and gratitude to each other	One or both are often dissociated, irritated, depressed or in crisis
People respond to most verbal and nonverbal communications	One or both ignore, avoid or shorten most communications
They review events in their history	They rarely review their relationship history
People greet after time apart and ask about each other’s activities and other news	They rarely interact when together, without even silent intimacy
They enjoy meeting each other’s needs for passion, intimacy and commitment	One or both often ignore or criticize the other’s goals and needs
They often discuss goals and dreams, shared values and shared meanings.	They rarely discuss goals, values or dreams
They share meals and chores together	They often cook, eat or do chores alone
They often go out together	They generally prefer to go out alone
They create projects which require cooperation	One or both avoid, ignore or give small attention to shared projects
They wish to enjoy sharing relationship happiness	One or both want to separate but cannot because of guilt, fear or constraints
They respect most of each other’s choices and decisions, and politely discuss differences	One or both show contempt for the other’s decisions and make angry demands
They want happiness together	One or both prefer happiness alone

What is Emotional Blackmail?

Does someone attempt to manipulate your emotions? This may follow a cycle of Demands – Resistance – Pressure – Threats – Compliance. The result?

• You feel dominated – your life feels controlled
• You feel intimidated by unreasonable demands
• You feel attacked with words, laughter or threats
• You feel manipulated by guilt, fear or compassion

Emotional blackmailers want power. They are often anxious and insecure – they may believe that they can relieve their frustrations by controlling you or other people, either habitually or during a crisis such as separation or divorce, loss of a job, illness or age.

Many emotional blackmailers were overprotected as children and did not develop confidence or skill in their ability to solve problems by themselves. Many are codependent with their victims (and some will change roles with their victims)!

Do you cause family, friends or co-workers to suffer
because you have emotional issues and you won’t get help?

You can end emotional blackmail. We help people who :

• fear a blackmailer’s anger
• need a blackmailer’s approval
• endlessly doubt or criticize themselves
• depend on the blackmailer for something
• blame themselves for other people’s emotions

Consequences of Emotional Blackmail on Children

Emotional blackmail, extended criticism and contempt can have severe consequences, especially for children. Victims often become silent, watchful, shy, uneasy and lonely. They may later respond with aggression and anger to people who attempt to be friendly. For some of these people, kindness may seem like a threat!

Abusive Victims

To gain your compliance, abusers may:

1. Act like victims
2. Block your goals
3. Make angry threats
4. Install limiting beliefs
5. Disguise abuse as humor
6. Contradict your perspectives
7. Withhold essential information
8. Forget promises or agreements
9. Invalidate your reality and perceptions
10. Trivialize your thoughts and achievements

Most emotional abusers seem to be copying their parents, while some are professionals such as doctors and therapists who copy their mentors. (See therapist-client codependence). We can help people manage most forms of abuse.

Common Emotional Blackmail

• Love (If  you love me you must do as I say)
• Goals (You must help me fulfill my important goals)
• Guilt (I sacrificed my life for you … you must do whatever I tell you)
• Punish (You must follow my beliefs and instructions – or I will punish you)
• Dependent / Codependent (I cannot cope without you so you must obey me)

Emotional blackmail is abuse – and the blackmailers are often relatives. They may threaten to punish you if you resist their control. They may know your vulnerabilities and your secrets, and use this knowledge to gain your compliance.

Contact us to manage emotional blackmail and other relationship issues.