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Gaslighting Quotes

Browse 107 quotes about Gaslighting.

Gaslighting Quotes

“Gaslighting can be subtle and unintentional, but as feminist writer Nora Samaran explains, it is particularly insidious because it undermines people's trust in their own capacities: "If you think of the power, the strength, the capacity to effect change that women who trust themselves are capable of, what we are losing when we doubt ourselves is an indomitable force for social change that is significant and therefore, to some, frightening. In other words, our capacity to know ourselves is immensely powerful." All forms of oppression seem to have this tendency: racism, heteropatriarchy, ableism, ageism, colonization, and other systems of oppression contort people's insights, experiences, and differences into weaknesses or deny them outright. For this reason, the emergence of trust can be a powerful weapon, which is being recovered all the time through struggle.”

DoubtTrustOppressionEmergenceGaslightingPatriachy
Book:Joyful Militancy: Building Thriving Resistance in Toxic Times
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“A taker doesn’t just take; they consume. They don't have limits. They’ll drain you dry and still look at you like you’re the problem for running empty. No matter how much love, how much patience, how much forgiveness you pour into them, it’s always expected and never enough. It never will be.”

StrengthAbuseResilienceSelf WorthPsychologicalThrillerManipulationEmotional AbuseToxic RelationshipsGaslighting
Book:Shattered Reflections: Behind the Smile
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“One can only return to the fact that even the most ordinary, good-hearted, intelligent people are literally prone to believing the most blatantly nonsensical untruths. And this comes from the realization that there are some opinions and some beliefs so incredibly inane, we may actually on occasion feel insane for not believing them; and that is probably because in giving the benefit of the doubt we self-doubt, we convince ourselves into lame passivity and blind acceptance, we tell ourselves, 'Maybe I'm just missing something here.”

FactsResearchStupidityQuestioningSkepticismBeliefsSelf DoubtGaslightingPopular OpinionBenefit Of The Doubt
Book:Healology
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“As a woman who is from a working-class background, I was aware, growing up, how little was expected of me in terms of achievement. It was assumed by my teachers that, like other girls, I too might go into teaching, or train as a nurse (not a doctor), or get a job to bide my time till marriage. Ambition was for others. It was not for the working class. It was not for working-class women. This has nothing to do with genetics. Nothing to do with individual attributes or interests. Nothing to do with what’s natural. It is about social circumstances. It is about socially engineered inequality. The unscientific lie that all women are inferior to men, that most men are inferior to other men, that non-whites are inferior to whites is a tidy but simple-minded way to avoid any kind of social justice. These are not ‘hard truths’. They are lies.”

WomenAmbitionInequalityGaslighting
Book:One Aladdin Two Lamps
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“When people take advantage of our generosity, even when we know they’re wrong, their words still sink in a bit. Perhaps it strengthens the narrative from when we were young, that something was wrong with us—thinking it was our fault when clearly it wasn’t, and perhaps even that we’re responsible for the misbehavior of others. If you were blamed for your own abuse as a kid, or no one ever believed you, these issues can resurface in your adult relationships, and your businesses are not immune.”

WomenSelf EsteemAbuseBlameNarcissismGaslighting
Book:Origin: Music, Art, Yoga & Consciousness
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“Forced Perspective by Stewart Stafford She unscrewed my eyeballs with daggers, as she had with her father before, no doubt. Fractured the irises so I saw things her way, jamming them back in so they wouldn’t pop out. It took time before focus felt no longer strange, as she asked if we were now lockstep viewers. I told her I’d let her know the moment I did — and suggested she take a walk in the sewers. She took umbrage at that, giving me black eyes, reverting at last to an optical divorce. She tapped out — project fail — and we drifted apart, mutually, of course. © 2026, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.”

DarkPowerRelationshipPsychologicalIronyControlSatireGothicGaslightingReverse Engineering
Author:Stewart Stafford
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“Everyone loses their class when they travel through hell, but only a few will regain it if they remain humble and accept the part they played in their own misery.”

ResponsibilityClassGrowing UpSelf AwarenessStupidityDenialMaturityIllegalJealousSelf RighteousnessDelusionalRise UpGaslightingSadisticHypocritesLadyBlamingBe RealBe BetterSuperiority ComplexJealous WomenBe An ExampleBe HonestControl FreaksInsecurity IssuesBe TrueHatred Of OthersSelf IntrospectionOwning UpWrong PathsBlamersBe ConsistentGod S DaughterLack Of SympathyArrogant WomenClasslessFake SpiritualismInjustRemain HumbleShifting BlameAbuse Of OthersBeing IndenialCruelty To OthersFinding ClassGet Self RespectLadylessLet Go Of HatredLive Your ReligionTeach Your DaughtersTwofaced
Author:Shannon L. Alder
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“Gaslighting causes us to doubt our own memories, perceptions, and judgments. It throws us psychologically off balance. It’s like being in the Twilight Zone. If you feel as though your self-esteem, confidence, and dignity has withered under the flame of gaslighting, you are not alone.”

Self EsteemPerceptionTraumaNarcissistDysfunctional FamilyManipulativeGaslightingPsychological AbuseTwilight Zone
Book:Soul Rescue: How to Break Free From Narcissistic Abuse & Heal Trauma
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“Narcissists are consumed with maintaining a shallow false self to others. They're emotionally crippled souls that are addicted to attention. Because of this they use a multitude of games, in order to receive adoration. Sadly, they are the most ungodly of God's creations because they don't show remorse for their actions, take steps to make amends or have empathy for others. They are morally bankrupt.”

AttentionCrueltyFakeLiarsNarcissismAdorationGaslightingAssholesLosersNarcissistsAttention SeekersDancing With The DevilManipulatorsUngodlyUngodly MenFake MenCruel Men
Author:Shannon L. Alder
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“Remember: As long as there's any part of yourself that believes you need your gaslighter to feel better about yourself, to boost your confidence, or to bolster your sense of who you are in the world, you'll be leaving yourself open for gaslighting.”

PsychologyAdviceSelf HelpGaslightingGaslight
Book:The Gaslight Effect: How to Spot and Survive the Hidden Manipulation Others Use to Control Your Life
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“Certain relationships can just wear you down. So you mirror or reflect back- kind of like a pet, reflecting back what its master wants. This can seem easier in the moment: Whatever it takes to back this person's vibe down. The master does not have to be male. Sometimes he is, but not always. Whoever the master is, they know this, that people can be trained. Either with praise, shame, the fear of failure, or the fear of being gaslighted, the technique is a relationship of rewards and punishments. There is no unconditional love here. No, this kind of relationship is all about the master's conditions. Not joint respectful mutual conditions, but their conditions.”

FearRelationshipsFailurePraiseShameRewardsPunishmentMasterGaslighting
Book:Resistance: A Songwriter's Story of Hope, Change, and Courage
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“After the fog lifts and you awaken to the truth about abuse, the narcissist and flying monkeys will minimize the facts about what took place. They will discredit you. They will undermine your own perception. They will accuse you of being insane. Even if you took the time to explain yourself, they will cast all blame onto you.”

TraumaManipulationNarcissistDiscreditGaslightingPsychological AbuseFalse AccusationsFlying MonkeysBlame ShiftingPathological Liars
Book:Soul Rescue: How to Break Free From Narcissistic Abuse & Heal Trauma
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“One of the hardest lessons I have learned social justice work is that, even when oppressive systems are confronted and dismantled, those responsible will- more often than not- take hold of the narrative to mitigate responsibility. As a result, the oppressed still tend to bear the brunt of the fallout. And what makes that even harder to process is that many people who would declare themselves "allies to the cause" will passively or actively buy into that false narrative because it is far easier and less costly than to walk in genuine solidarity. I don't say this so that people will feel hopeless about their commitments to justice. Quite the opposite. If you know that this happens, you won't be as crushed when it does.”

JusticeSocial JusticeOppressionSolidarityGaslightingAllyshipTransformative Justice
Author:Jamie Arpin-Ricci
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“It is not okay for someone you like to treat you poorly and then pretend it didn’t happen, making you question your own grasp on reality. This dynamic is called gaslighting. It’s a common tactic of abusers to shift the focus of the blame from their bad behavior onto the person they are victimizing. One important side effect of gaslighting is having your memory “black out” after a fight (because your brain is trying to protect you from the cruelty of the abuse), which results in not being able to remember how an argument started. You may start to internalize the idea that there is something wrong with you and that you did something to provoke the situation as you’re increasingly beaten down and confused.”

Emotional AbuseGaslightingPsychological AbuseAbusive RelationshipGas Light
Author:shannon weber
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“The family bully takes sibling rivalry to a whole new level; sibling abuse. While it’s common for families to have sibling rivalry, what stands out the most with the bully is their intent to hurt others badly, especially the family scapegoat. They can physically harm you. They will mentally torture you. In some cases, they will sexually violate you. They have evil motives to control their family members, manipulate them, and gaslight them.”

TraumaNarcissistic AbuseDysfunctional FamilyManipulativeGaslightingSibling RivalryScapegoatsSibling AbuseFamily Bully
Book:Soul Rescue: How to Break Free From Narcissistic Abuse & Heal Trauma
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“The scapegoat is the family punching bag. On a daily basis, you are singled out for all of the collective ridicule, made into the butt of every joke, and excluded from family events, holidays, and important legal matters. It doesn't take long for outsiders or other relatives to take note of your role and to be drawn into the destructive dynamics. Family scapegoats are belittled, humiliated, battered, rejected, betrayed, and treated poorly. It's a clear case of psychological abuse, manipulation, and harassment.”

RejectionManipulationSlanderGaslightingPsychological AbuseNpdIntergenerational TraumaToxic SiblingsFamily ScapegoatingMental Heal
Book:Toxic Siblings: A Survival Guide to Rise Above Sibling Abuse & Heal Trauma
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“You all are in a hopeless bind here. Standards are inescapable. Imposed standards are inescapable. You want to pretend that this is not the case, all the while vigorously telling us how you would impose them. The funniest thing about this is that you cannot see (or will not admit) what you are doing. We (conservative Christians) have a standard, we know the basis for it, and we are willing to live by it and defend it. You [progressives] have a standard, you are willing to impose it on the rest of us, but when called upon to defend or explain your standard (and why it is authoritative over all of us), you surround yourselves with a cloud of clichés. But no society can exist unless the adherents of the worldview in power are willing to act via the law as though the adherents of various minority views are just flat wrong. Just admit that this is what you are currently doing to us. The rest of your day will be sunny and filled with epistemic relief.”

GaslightingProgressivesConservativesSecularistsBy What StandardSkyhooks
Book:Apologetics in the Void: Hometown Hurly-Burly
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