You FINALLY met someone who is everything you’ve dreamed of.
They share the same goals, values, and interests as you.
They shower you with love. They build up your self-esteem. They even like the same spiritual activities as you.
But then suddenly, everything starts to change. The person you thought was your twin flame disappears and a nefarious version of them replaces the good.
Is your soulmate buried under there somewhere – or are you captivated by a false twin flame?
The truth is, narcissists are expert manipulators – chameleons really – that exploit your longing for a soulmate to destroy your life with emotional abuse for their gain.
Are you continuing a toxic relationship, believing you’re experiencing the twin flame dynamic? Here are 13 signs you’re dealing with a narcissist rather than a genuine twin flame and how to break free.
How Narcissists Exploit the Twin Flame Dynamic
A narcissist can never be your twin flame because they change their emotions, actions, and words to fit every situation.
At the end of the day, someone with a narcissistic personality disorder does not experience emotions the same way you do. To them, emotions are tools to control and manipulate people.
It’s incorrect to say that narcissists lack empathy. In reality, they lack compassion and humanity.
Narcissists are skilled at using a potentially dangerous form of empathy that many people aren’t aware of. It’s entirely different from emotional or compassionate empathy, which is what most of us think of when we hear the term ‘empathy’.
They know what you want from a relationship and they know what to do to keep you hooked. The narcissist will get into your head and say all the right things. They’ll lead you on just long enough to capture your full attention.
Then, one day, a switch flips.
The person you thought was your soulmate suddenly starts fights over petty things. They’re putting you down constantly. You’re second-guessing everything you thought you knew about yourself – but NOT the relationship, right?
If you honestly believe this person is your soulmate, surely, they know what’s best for you, right?
Maybe you should make some changes. After all, you don’t want to lose them. Sound familiar?
That’s a false twin flame dynamic and part of the narcissistic abuse cycle.
13 Signs You’ve Encountered a Narcissistic False Twin Flame
Narcissists know how to manipulate people. This is why all your friends see a completely different person and often won’t believe you when you describe the toxic behavior and abuse you endure.
It’s also why you found yourself in this situation in the first place. You were duped and exploited.
If the points below sound familiar, you’re likely experiencing a false twin flame relationship with a narcissist.
1 – You’re Living in a Toxic Déjà vu
Perhaps you spent too long at dinner with your friends. Maybe you received a “how are you” text message from someone the narcissist doesn’t like or trust.
Either way, you’re having the same nasty fight over and over again.
Of course, the narcissist will frame their jealousy and controlling nature in a positive light and portray themselves as the real victim:
“I just worry about you” or “I just love you so much that I want you all to myself” they’ll say.
2 – You Feel like You’re Working Overtime to “Pull” Out Their Emotional Side
You’ll tell yourself, “they’ve been cheated on and hurt in the past so it’s only natural that they don’t want to open up – yet.”
You’re doing all the emotional labor and they’re completely emotionally unavailable. Anyone who’s ever watched It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia has heard of the DENNIS system, where he leads women on with snippets of contrived vulnerability.
You’ll have moments where you feel like you’ve finally made an emotional breakthrough only to have them disappear into the emotional void again.
3 – They Keep You at Arm’s Length
A false twin flame will have a dozen “legitimate” reasons why they can’t commit – and they’re all a big load of BS.
They’re too busy to give you the attention you deserve.
They still have feelings for their ex.
Their kids are their whole life.
In all these situations, the narcissist has made YOU the bad guy if you try to push them to commit – what kind of monster would force someone to take time away from their children?!
It can be easy to latch on to the ‘They’re the Runner! I’m the Chaser!’ to help make sense of what you are feeling. Some so-called twin flame experts claim you won’t know you’ve met your twin flame until after you’ve separated. This misinformation may inspire you to hold out indefinitely for a person who has absolutely no plans for a future with you. Because, in reality, you aren’t experiencing divine separation. You’re getting the silent treatment due to the fact you’re dealing with a narcissist.
4 – You’re Making Excuses for Their Crappy Behavior
You can be honest here: They treat you like crap, don’t they?
Still, you make excuses for them in your mind because you want so badly to believe that this is your twin flame.
In the beginning, they put on such a good front that the connection seemed entirely real.
Hint: it wasn’t. It was a masquerade the whole time.
If you find yourself being treated without kindness or love, walk away. This is not a twin flame reunion.
5 – They’re Seeing Other People
Big red flag here.
Please, don’t tell yourself “they’re just a free spirit who can’t be tied down.” They’re using you – and everyone else they’re seeing.
Of course, we’re not talking about mutually agreed on open relationships where you’ve discussed this together (although a narcissist loves to take advantage of one-sided open relationships).
If you’ve caught the narcissist cheating and they claim polyamory, your first inclination might be to join the narcissist’s love tribe to avoid losing him or her. But think hard and deep about what you could be getting yourself into. Because, truth be told, most narcissists who claim to be polyamorous are simply using it as an excuse to keep an ongoing string of lovers at their beck and call.
6 – What They Say and Do are Two Totally Different Things
Simply put, a narcissist false twin flame will say anything to keep you engaged and attentive.
They’ll tell you they have all the same hobbies and love all the same books, but their actions tell a completely different story.
The truth is, the narcissist has completely lied to you. A true twin flame’s words and actions will always be aligned.
7 – The Unconditional Love You Give Isn’t Returned
When your partner makes mistakes – big or small – you try to talk it over, work through the differences, and move on. That’s what people do in healthy relationships.
But this relationship isn’t healthy. When you make a mistake – no matter how small – it immediately turns into a five-alarm fire. How could you attack someone you love like this?!
In healthy relationships, it’s normal to say something like, “Hey, when you do so-and-so it bothers me.” When you’ve tried this in the past, you’ve expected your partner to react with compassion and apologize. However, that’s not what happens when you’re dealing with a narcissist. Instead, they start a massive fight and YOU end up apologizing to THEM. They’re always the victim.
A true twin flame won’t make you feel miserable about yourself. You may experience needed areas of growth, but such growth will be the fruit of expansion and nurturing. A twin flame won’t tear you down…quite the opposite. They’ll make you feel held and accept you for who you are.
8 – They Sound Like a Completely Different Person Around Others
I can’t stress enough that narcissists are master manipulators. They manipulate everyone they encounter.
On the rare occasion you and the narcissist go out with friends (I’ll explain more about this later), they suddenly turn into a completely different person you don’t even recognize.
For example, let’s say that your partner doesn’t know the first thing about cars. Last week, their battery died and they had to call AAA. Yet, here you are at dinner with friends and they’re chatting up your mechanic friend about how much they LOVE cars.
Replace cars in this situation with anything – cooking, sewing, basketball, history, geopolitics, you name it. You had no idea they knew so much about cars (or whatever).
Well, that’s because they don’t.
Narcissists need people to like them. And not just like them – they need people to admire them and think highly of them.
They’re NOT who you thought they were. In fact, they probably don’t even know who they are themselves! That’s how shallow narcissists are. They’re a false twin flame that will shapeshift to fit any role they need.
9 – They Bring Out the Worst in You
A true twin flame should bring out the best in you.
Phrases like “you’ll do better next time,” “great job,” and “I love you no matter what” should all be extremely common.
A narcissist will shower you with this praise – in the beginning. It’s called love bombing and the narcissist does this to hook you.
Over time, the veneer of support will disappear, and they’ll start instigating your worst qualities. You’ll find yourself lashing out, hurling insults, and just generally stooping to their level.
The false twin flame will tell you that this toxic behavior is all part of love. It’s not.
10 – You’re Constantly Trying to Live Up to Their Unrealistic Expectations
Again, a true twin flame will try to support your best qualities and build you up.
A narcissist false twin flame will set a bunch of unrealistic expectations that you’ll never be able to live up to – but that’s the whole point.
The narcissist wants you to become consumed with pleasing them. The point isn’t to actually please them – that’s impossible. The point is to keep you in a state of fear, trying desperately to keep the peace.
11 – The Relationship Has Consumed All of Your Energy
Every time you get ready to leave the house, do you think, “will they get angry that I’m leaving without telling them?”
Do you feel a sinking feeling when your phone buzzes while you’re out because you know it’s going to be an angry text filled with slurs?
A narcissist will do everything they can to isolate you from your friends and loved ones. They will consume all your time and energy with petty fights and spinning in place.
A true twin flame, on the other hand, encourages you to maintain your identity separate from them. There’s no need to isolate you from the other people in your life. You still maintain your freedom even though you’re in a relationship with them.
12 – You’re Giving Up Parts of Your Identity to Match Theirs
Aside from consuming your mental and physical energy, a false twin flame will completely erase your identity.
Your interests, goals, hobbies, values, opinions, other relationships – gone.
A narcissist wants you to focus all your energy and values on them. They become your identity.
A true twin flame will want to watch you thrive as your own person. You will never lose your identity with your true twin flame. Instead, you will experience expansion beyond anything you ever imagined.
13 – You’ve Completely Abandoned Boundaries
Some people are duped into believing it’s cute to share phone passcodes and erase bathroom boundaries.
Removing boundaries like this does not mean you’re on a different spiritual level than other folks who are in romantic relationships. The narcissist wants you to feel physically attached to them – like you’re an extension of them because that’s exactly how they view you.
A true twin flame connection will not include nonexistent boundaries which only serve to form a codependent relationship. Twin flame boundaries come from a place of peaceful love, not shame or the violation of your dignity as an individual.
How Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Can Help
Narcissistic abuse destroys everything you thought you knew about yourself. A narcissist will completely drain you of your identity and replace it with their own.
All your thoughts, all your energy, everything you do – it’s all to appease the narcissist and build their ego.
That’s not a twin flame relationship. It’s emotional abuse.
Narcissistic abuse recovery is vital for rebuilding your identity after experiencing a false twin flame. Not only that, it’s critical to learn how to identify the signs of narcissistic abuse before you find yourself knee-deep in another toxic relationship with no exit strategy.
You may well find your true twin flame – and they won’t put you down, devalue you, or fill your life with anxiety and worry. They’ll support you and build you up – and not only in a superficial manner to manipulate you. True twin flames are too closely connected and too spiritually evolved to ever intentionally hurt or manipulate you.
You deserve better – much better – and you’ll find it faster if you release any toxic relationships you may be in so you can make space for healing and divine connection.