October 14, 2024 at 3:18pm EST

Claiming Your Space

Hey, it’s Juliana!

When you experience narcissistic abuse, it’s common to feel like you aren’t allowed to have your own space.

If you can relate to this at all, here’s an exercise our community has been using to overcome this feeling:

Start by choosing a small area in your life that you can control, like a closet, nightstand, or the space around a mirror.

Next, make a change to this area that feels personal to you.

For example…

I printed out photos that remind me to practice self-care and put them on the walls where I get ready each morning.

Then, each time you use or look at this space, try to acknowledge the changes you’ve made.

There are many ways this can be done; I do it by practicing self-care for 5–10 minutes every morning.

Once you feel comfortable calling this space your own, choose a new area of your life that you can control and start this process again.

This exercise works because it helps you gradually rebuild a sense of ownership and control over different areas of your life.

By choosing a space and making it yours, you’re retraining your mind to feel comfortable having your own space.

All the best,

Juliana