Divorce can be hard on any Texas resident, but it’s made even harder when you’re divorcing a narcissist. Narcissists by nature like to create as much conflict and drama as possible, which can make the divorce drag on and hike up the cost in court fees.
How do you know if you’re divorcing a narcissist?
Most narcissists have to be clinically diagnosed by a psychologist. In general, though, a narcissist is someone who feels the need to create conflict or shift the blame onto other people.
Even if your soon-to-be ex-spouse isn’t formally a formally diagnosed narcissist, it might feel like it when you’re in the middle of a high-conflict divorce. Some signs that you might be divorcing a narcissist include your spouse:
– Spreading rumors to all of your friends and family during fights or the divorce process
– Avoiding any form of compromise, instead of finding more and more things to argue over in court
– Constantly changing the subject when they run out of arguing points
Narcissists will drag out the divorce process until they get what they want or feel like their own hurt feelings have been vindicated. In a divorce, this means dragging out the process until you’re more likely to compromise on who gets what.
How do you handle a high-conflict divorce?
Most of the time, mediation is not an option in high-conflict divorces. You should have a list of things that you’re willing to compromise on and a list of things that you absolutely cannot compromise on. In mediation or divorce court, it’s important to stick to the facts and not engage your ex; it’s the need to be right on both sides that can fuel a narcissist’s argument and keep the process from getting resolved.
The best thing you can do is keep documents and receipts about everything and be prepared for a long divorce process. While it can be very frustrating to handle a high-conflict divorce, you can look toward the light at the end of the tunnel of finally being separated from your ex.