Relationship Abuse Podcasts Episodes

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Terry shares the story of a relationship marked by physical violence, threats, isolation, stalking, and an intense trauma bond. What began with relentless pursuit and attention slowly became constant monitoring, public humiliation, financial sabotage, and escalating abuse. Even after Terry tried to leave, her abuser continued to threaten her children, violate restraining orders, follow her, destroy property, and appear wherever she went. Terry ...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon discusses why leaving an abusive relationship can be so difficult and why survivors should never be shamed for staying. He explores the emotional attachment created through cycles of abuse, along with the fear, financial dependence, isolation, custody concerns, health needs, immigration issues, cultural pressure, and lack of institutional support that can make leaving feel dangerous or impossible. This episode also examines how hope, se...

In this debrief episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon Chadwick debriefs Felix’s survivor story and examines how a whirlwind beginning can make a relationship feel destined long before trust has been earned. The episode explores how fate, long distance, and outside validation helped carry the relationship forward, even as controlling patterns began to emerge. Brandon also discusses connection becoming surveillance, double standards around communication, apologies creating renewed hope, and th...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Felix shares the story of a long-distance relationship that began like a once-in-a-lifetime romance and slowly became controlling, destabilizing, and physically abusive. What initially felt like fate was reinforced through intense declarations of love, marriage plans, international travel, matching rituals, and promises of a shared future. Over time, Felix found himself managing his partner’s emotions, proving his commitment, sacrificing parts of his own...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Cara shares her story of surviving a four-year relationship with a rage-filled physical abuser. After leaving a long emotionally abusive marriage, Cara was pulled into a relationship that began with love bombing, constant praise, and the feeling of finally being seen. But over time, the relationship became a cycle of fear, isolation, trauma bonding, suicide threats, physical intimidation, and emotional caretaking. Cara discusses the confusion o...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Darlene Thomas, Executive Director of Greenhouse17, a domestic violence shelter and advocacy program in Kentucky built on a 40-acre farm. Darlene shares how Greenhouse17 reimagined shelter by moving away from shame, secrecy, rigid rules, and one-size-fits-all support. Together, they discuss survivor shame, community belonging, financial abuse, economic repair, and why safety is only one part of rebuilding after abuse. Darlene explains ...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Lana shares her story of growing up as a fixer, surviving childhood abuse, and later entering a relationship with a jealous and physically abusive partner who used love bombing, blame-shifting, addiction, sexual coercion, and violence to keep control. What began as intensity and romance quickly turned into accusations, isolation, fear, and repeated physical abuse. Lana explains how the abuser's jealousy became a weapon, how his addiction was us...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon discusses how victim-playing abusers use guilt, empathy, and blame-shifting to make survivors feel responsible for the abuse they are experiencing. The episode looks at how an abuser may present themselves as wounded, abandoned, misunderstood, or mistreated in order to gain sympathy early in the relationship. But as the relationship continues, that same victim story can become a way to control the survivor, avoid accountability, win arg...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon talks about plausible deniability as a manipulation tactic in abusive relationships. Instead of focusing only on excuses or denial after the fact, this episode looks at how abusers can use suggestion, guilt, shame, concern, victimhood, and the illusion of choice to shape a survivor’s behavior without ever making a direct demand. Brandon breaks down how this can show up through isolation, decision-making, body image, emotional responsibility, weaponized forgetfulness, and gaslighting. The episode also explores why this tactic can be so confusing for survivors, because the abuser may never say the controlling part out loud, while still steering the relationship exactly where they want it to go.

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Louise shares the story of a 40-year relationship with a man who always seemed to be in conflict with someone else, until that conflict finally turned toward her. At first, Louise believed she was different. He could argue with colleagues, professionals, institutions, and family members, but with her, he seemed loving, principled, and safe. Over time, Louise’s life became smaller around his needs, his career, his battles, his conspiracy thinking, and his...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Blanche about her relationship with a dangerous jealous abuser. What began as jealousy, put-downs, and questions about her past slowly became isolation, physical violence, family-enabled abuse, threats, stalking, and a fight to get free. Blanche shares how her abuser used jealousy as a reason to control what she wore, who she spoke to, where she looked, and how much freedom she had. She also explains how the abuse escalated a...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon talks about how abusers use exhaustion as a form of control. From constant monitoring and privacy violations to fear, guilt, gaslighting, circular conversations, lack of help, and sabotage, these tactics can slowly drain a survivor’s energy, clarity, and sense of self. This episode looks at why abuse can become harder to name when you are worn down, why leaving can feel impossible when you are running on empty, and how abusers use confusion and depletion to keep the relationship centered around them. Brandon also discusses why rest, reflection, and separating your own feelings from the feelings someone else is trying to create can be an important part of getting clarity back.

In this debrief episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon breaks down Val’s story through the lens of trauma bonding, emotional punishment, silent treatment, intermittent reinforcement, and the long process of seeing the cycle clearly. The episode also explores why leaving may require distance, and why the body often understands danger before the mind has the language for it. Click if you want to be a guest on our survivor story podcast , please send us an email at narcissistapocalypse@pm.me Cli...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Val shares her story of a long marriage shaped by emotional punishment, silent treatments, rage cycles, financial manipulation, and the slow erosion of her sense of safety. What began as a natural friendship slowly became a relationship where Val was punished whenever her needs, feelings, accomplishments, or independence took up space. Her abuser withheld affection, withdrew communication, ruined birthdays and milestones, shifted responsibility onto her,...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon breaks down Angelica’s story and the patterns of abuse beneath it, including rage, financial control, sexual coercion, physical violence, pregnancy, and the fear that can make leaving feel impossible. Angelica’s story shows how coercive control can shrink a survivor’s life one pressure point at a time. Her husband controlled money, work, transportation, the home, and the emotional atmosphere of the relationship, while Angelica tried to keep the f...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Remy shares her story of being in a long-term relationship with a jealous and hypocritical abuser. What began as intense attention from someone she remembered from high school slowly became a relationship shaped by accusations, projection, infidelity, physical intimidation, monitoring, and control. Remy talks about being accused of cheating while her partner was secretly pursuing other women, the way his jealousy made her defend herself again and again, ...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Parker returns to share the story of her second abusive relationship with a petty emotional abuser. After leaving her first abusive marriage and being disfellowshipped from the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Parker was isolated from family, friends, and the support system she had known her whole life. When a new relationship moved quickly into marriage, she thought she had found safety. Instead, the relationship changed almost immediately. Parker’s husband used si...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse Q&A, Brandon discusses why abusive partners often do not want to change, using ideas from Lundy Bancroft’s Why Does He Do That? The episode looks at the rewards an abuser gets from abusive behavior, including power, control, privilege, free labor, financial control, double standards, and the ability to make everyone else organize their lives around the abuser’s needs. Brandon also breaks down how these patterns become reinforced over time, and why abusive behavior is not just about anger, stress, trauma, or losing control. It often creates a life where the abuser gets their way, avoids responsibility, receives attention, and keeps the relationship built around their comfort. This episode is about understanding the benefits abusers receive from control, and why real change requires giving up the privileges abuse has created.

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Rebelle shares the story of a marriage that began with coincidence and "fate". She was a lawyer, an athlete, and someone who had already survived more than most people ever face. She believed she was strong enough to handle almost anything. However, that belief became one of the things her future husband used against her. What started as romance slowly turned into a life where Rebelle was managing everything while her husband avoided responsibility and m...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon breaks down the love bombing, fraud, coercive control, secrecy, self-doubt, and trauma bonding in Jess’s story. Brandon discusses how someone can understand trauma intellectually and still be vulnerable to old survival patterns, how secrecy becomes control by making normal questions feel wrong, how isolation can happen without direct commands, and why trauma bonds can make relief feel like love. He also explores the fear, obligation, guilt, shame...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Jess about her relationship with an abusive con man who built a false life around lies, infidelity, fraud, and manipulation. After leaving one painful relationship, Jess thought she had done the work and was ready to choose differently. Then she met someone who seemed steady, charming, family-oriented, and safe. What followed was a fast-moving relationship filled with love bombing, secrecy, financial deception, verbal abuse, hidden rel...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks about survivor guilt and shame after abuse, and why so many survivors still feel responsible after leaving an abusive relationship. Brandon breaks down the shame of thinking, “I should have left sooner,” the identity crisis that can happen when you never imagined abuse would happen to you, and the guilt many parents carry about what their children experienced during the relationship and after it ended. Brandon also talks about why survivors...

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Tegan shares her story of growing up in a family system where shame, criticism, and cultural excuses taught her to minimize her own pain. When she met her ex, the relationship felt like proof that she was finally chosen, wanted, and loved. But over time, the relationship became tangled with addiction, guilt trips, sexual coercion, intimidation, and fear. Tegan discusses how her ex’s drinking and drug use created chaos, but how the abuse also showed up in...

In this rerelease episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Erika about growing up inside religious conditioning that taught her to submit, stay quiet, and see her worth through being a wife and mother. After losing her family and community as a young adult, Erika entered relationships where she kept trying to build safety, stability, and family, even while being worn down by neglect, pressure, and control. Her second marriage became the center of this story. Erika shares how coercive...