He Was a Team Player — But His Teammate Never Told Him the Rules | Justin’s Story

He Was a Team Player — But His Teammate Never Told Him the Rules | Justin’s Story

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Justin shares the story of a relationship where he believed he was part of a team — until he realized he had been navigating it alone.

What began as a promising relationship with his second wife quickly accelerated into a rushed engagement, marriage, and parenthood. Justin noticed early red flags — overreactions that left him feeling off balance and growing control over their finances that he struggled to fully understand. Still, he believed in working through challenges, trusting that commitment meant showing up, adapting, and doing his part.

But over time, the emotional and financial pressure intensified. Justin found himself increasingly isolated, carrying responsibility while losing clarity and stability. As he worked harder to keep things together, the reality beneath the surface became harder to ignore.

It’s a story of rushed commitment, financial control, isolation, shame, obligation, guilt, fear, control, religious beliefs, being good enough, accusations, shifting expectations, divorce, custody, self-doubt, loss of identity, rebuilding, rediscovering freedom, finding peace in the small things again, and becoming the parent he always hoped to be.

CONTENT WARNING - This episode mentions child sexual abuse.

Click if you want to be a guest on our survivor story podcast, please send us an email at narcissistapocalypse@pm.me

Click on the title to read about Coercive Control as Care: Signs & Patterns

Sign up to our Domestic Violence Newsletter


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episoder(630)

How Invalidating Families Shape Adult Relationships

How Invalidating Families Shape Adult Relationships

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks about four types of invalidating family environments: the chaotic family, the physical or mental health problem family, the perfect family, and ...

31 Mar 23min

Debrief | Anger, Financial Abuse, and The Moment The Mask Drops in Clara’s Story

Debrief | Anger, Financial Abuse, and The Moment The Mask Drops in Clara’s Story

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon breaks down the deeper patterns in Clara’s story. What first looked like anger and emotional immaturity slowly revealed itself to be gaslighting, fina...

30 Mar 21min

Clara & The Angry Financial Abuser

Clara & The Angry Financial Abuser

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Clara about her relationship with an angry financial abuser. What first felt like anger and defensiveness slowly revealed itself to be some...

29 Mar 52min

Debrief | Mirroring, Future Faking, Trust, and Control in Jenna Lee’s Story

Debrief | Mirroring, Future Faking, Trust, and Control in Jenna Lee’s Story

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon explores how mirroring, future faking, and quick trust-building shaped Jenna Lee’s story. What felt intimate and meaningful at first slowly became con...

26 Mar 20min

Rerelease | Jenna Lee & The Controlling Firefighter

Rerelease | Jenna Lee & The Controlling Firefighter

In this re-release episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon talks with Jenna Lee about her relationship with a firefighter who built trust quickly and used it just as fast. What began with connection...

25 Mar 58min

Why It Feels Impossible to Leave: The Guilt That Keeps You There

Why It Feels Impossible to Leave: The Guilt That Keeps You There

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, we talk about the kind of guilt that keeps people stuck in abusive relationships.  This is the guilt that builds slowly. You start feeling responsible for the...

24 Mar 18min

Debrief | Control Disguised as Care, Moving Goalposts, and the Need for Approval in Helena’s Story

Debrief | Control Disguised as Care, Moving Goalposts, and the Need for Approval in Helena’s Story

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Brandon Chadwick does an educational follow-up to Helena’s survivor story, breaking down the core dynamics that shaped her abusive relationship. What began as...

23 Mar 25min

Helena & The Abuse Disguised as Care

Helena & The Abuse Disguised as Care

In this episode of Narcissist Apocalypse, Helena shares her story of growing up in chaos, surviving one visibly abusive marriage, and then entering another relationship that did not look abusive at fi...

22 Mar 58min

Populært innen Fakta

mikkels-paskenotter
fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
foreldreradet
treningspodden
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
jakt-og-fiskepodden
takk-og-lov-med-anine-kierulf
sinnsyn
rss-kunsten-a-leve
hverdagspsyken
rss-bisarr-historie
rss-var-forste-kaffe
rss-kull
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
fryktlos
lederskap-nhhs-podkast-om-ledelse
gravid-uke-for-uke
rss-sunn-okonomi