I’ve noticed a growing trend in the world of narcissism survival.
People want to make a living off of us.
It is one thing for professional therapist to make a living. It is one thing for someone to tell their story and sell it, but I am seeing numerous charlatans jump on the bandwagon and trying to make survivors their customers.
At first a few professionals were writing books, then some amateurs like myself stepped up and started telling our stories for a small price, but now? Survivors are big business. When I first started blogging, there were some big, main Facebook pages and a few strong pages, (like Psychopath Free.) I started putting my little words on the screen and selling my eBooks to pay for the website maintenance because I wanted to be heard. I wanted to tell the world everything that the sociopath’s flying monkeys refused to hear. There were a few others small writers like myself out there who had genuine stories to tell. I started making little memes to match each of my blogs, and to share blips on Facebook so people could see them and come read the full story.
After a couple years, I started seeing my words all over the place…with other people’s names on them because they were using my words to promote themselves. Umm…okay. I’m not making a living or even a profit off my words, so I have an issue with someone taking advantage of me to try to make a living off my back. It’s dishonest to everyone involved.
The HUGE trend these days is for people who do not write anything themselves to copy and paste, or closely summarize other people’s words then put their own names on it to advertise and sell their “consulting” businesses and ask for donations on a Patreon account. I see my memes on a daily basis on other people’s pages where they are asking for donations for “their” work or their “wisdom.”
In the famous and infamous words of Barack Obama: “You didn’t build that!”
I have no problem with people telling their stories and asking for reimbursement for their time. I DO have a problem with people pretending to be gurus–using other people’s words and wisdom–and selling themselves as consultants to people who have already been abused. I have no idea how many of them are actually making money by luring people this way, but I do know that when I have called them out for using my work to ask for money for themselves, several have gone livid and started smear campaigns against me. I guess they feel entitled to make money off others’ work? They see vulnerable survivors as their audience to get rich quick? Odd. I write about people who use others that way.
Therapy is a wonderful thing, and you can get therapy from a professional for the same or less cost than internet “healers” and consultants want from you. There is nothing professional about someone who copies the words of others, then pretends to be an expert and ask for money. In fact, that is what I call a scam. I urge survivors to see professionals with degrees and state certification. They may not always understand narcissistic abuse, but keep looking until you find one who does. You are less likely to be taken by a fraud or phony who sees you as a dollar sign.
Many counties offer low-income assistance, many insurance policies offer therapy, many therapists will work on a sliding scale. There are options out there that are background checked and verified.
Unfortunately, since so many people have been taken by narcissists, people who would gladly take advantage of them again have jumped into the ring. If you look at social media, everybody and their brother has a page of images they have copied from other pages, and a good number of them are asking for donations…for their great ability to copy and paste, I guess.
I have said all along that I am no professional or expert. I’m a person who has been through hell and tells my story. I observe and describe what I see, but I don’t sell myself as a therapist. I’m just a person paying attention and calling out red flags…which angers the people who have them.
There is something unsafe about people who copy others and want YOU to give them money for doing it.