Confused by your relationship? Do you catch yourself second-guessing, walking on eggshells, or feeling emotionally drained? Whether you’re still in the chaos or trying to rebuild after leaving, this podcast is your lifeline.
Join Dr. Kerry McAvoy as she exposes the hidden dynamics of toxic relationships. You’ll learn how destructive personalities operate, the manipulative tactics they use, and the stages of abuse—plus the practical steps to heal and reclaim your life.
If you’re ready to break free, rebuild your self-worth, and find lasting emotional freedom, hit play and start your recovery journey today.
Latest episodes
Showing 20 · updated from the feed
What Happens Inside a Narcissist the Moment You Confront Them & Why It Will Never Lead to Change
#39 trending · Mental Health
You’ve tried explaining yourself. You’ve tried having the conversation. But what happens when nothing changes, no matter how carefully you say it?
When you’ve spent so l
Oct 26 27 min
Reactive Abuse: 4 Questions That Reveal Who Was Really the Dangerous One in the Room
Reactive abuse isn't a sign you've become the abusive one. It's the predictable end of a setup: months of provocation, timed for the moment you finally break.
In this h
Oct 26 29 min
The 7-Stage Trauma Bond That Makes Leaving Feel Impossible
Why do smart people stay in toxic relationships long after they see the pattern? It was never weakness — it was conditioning by design.
In this episode, Kerry unpacks th
Oct 22 21 min
How Narcissistic Abuse Destroys Your Identity | Meg Tuohey
Have you noticed how leaving the narcissist didn't bring YOU back? Why you still feel blank, indecisive, and disconnected from yourself long after the relationship e
Oct 19 31 min
They Told You Who They Were on the First Date: The Narcissist Red Flags No One Taught You to Hear
Feeling trapped in a toxic relationship? Get my free guide, Still Torn? 7 Signs You’re Emotionally Trapped: https://7-signs.subscribepage.io/
They didn't hide who t
Oct 15 21 min
Why Narcissists Need Ongoing Drama: It's All About Keeping You Exhausted & Under Control
Feeling trapped in a toxic relationship? Get my free guide, Still Torn? 7 Signs You’re Emotionally Trapped: https://7-signs.subscribepage.io/
Have you noticed how the na
Oct 12 29 min
Reactive Abuse: 4 Questions That Reveal Who Was Really the Dangerous One in the Room
ARE YOU FEELING STUCK?
Take the FREE “Toxic or Troubled?” survey to discover your relationship type and get instant access to a complete, private mini-course—educational
Oct 8 26 min
Dr. Les Carter: Stop Trying to Make a Narcissist Understand You — Do This Instead
Are You Feeling Stuck?Take my FREE “Toxic or Troubled?” survey to discover your relationship type and get instant access to a complete, private mini-course—educational ov
Oct 5 33 min
They Didn't Miss You, They Ran Out of Money: How Hoovering Actually Works
Future faking hoovering isn't a change of heart. It's a second round of grooming, aimed at exactly what the first round wanted.In this highlight from Kerry's weekly live
Oct 1 22 min
Narcissist, Psychopath, or Sadist? Does Naming Your Abuser's Personality Type Actually Help?
What if naming the disorder never actually got you out? And what if the thing you've been calling proof was really just a way to feel in control?In this episode, Kerry an
Sep 28 30 min
Gray Divorce and the 30-Year Con: Why Covert Narcissists Never Wanted You to Leave
Gray divorce isn't a midlife crisis. For a lot of people, it's the end of a con that ran for decades.When researchers ask why people divorce after 50, the top answer from
Sep 24 20 min
Narcissistic Love Withdrawal: Why You Chase Their Affection and Lose Yourself
Why did you do things you swore you'd never do, just to get their love back?
In this episode, Kerry and researcher Dr. Karen Mitchell unpack why affection from a narcissi
Sep 21 44 min
DARVO Exposed: How Manipulators Make YOU the Abuser When You Confront Them
Why did the narcissist’s collapse look so real — curled on the floor, shaking, sweating, begging you not to leave — yet nothing changed after?What looks like a breakdown
Sep 17 18 min
Why Narcissists Ruin Your Sleep: Don't Miss This Nasty Bedtime Control Tactic
What if the reason you feel like you're always “nagging” has nothing to do with you being difficult — and everything to do with deliberate provocation?In this episode, Dr
Sep 14 28 min
I Treated Narcissists for Years and Never Saw a Collapse — Here's What Really Happens
Why did the narcissist’s collapse look so real — curled on the floor, shaking, sweating, begging you not to leave — yet nothing changed after?What looks like a breakdown
Sep 10 28 min
He Fooled Every Therapist in the Room — What No One Warns You (feat. Chelsey Brooke Cole)
What if the trait everyone praises you for is the exact one the narcissist is scanning for?That isn’t naivety. That isn’t missing the red flags. Agreeableness — assuming
Sep 7 34 min
The Family Scapegoat: Why You Were Chosen, and Why It Was Never About You
Why does one person in the family end up carrying everything — the blame, the mood, the thing nobody will say out loud? That wasn't a flaw in you. That was a role, and so
Sep 3 19 min
How Narcissists Pick Their Victims in Under an Hour
What if it only takes him an hour to know exactly how to control you?That wasn't chemistry. That wasn't "instant connection." A predator ran a background check on your ch
Aug 31 36 min
Rumination After Narcissistic Abuse: Why Your Mind Won't Stop, and How to Break the Loop
Why do you keep replaying a relationship that's already over — running the same five minutes on a loop, searching for the one detail that will finally make sense of it?
T
Aug 27 25 min
The Narcissist Relationship Cycle: Why They Get Bored and Repeat It
What if the reason they keep coming back to you has nothing to do with love — and everything to do with boredom?
In this episode, Dr. Kerry and Lynn Strathdee break down
Aug 24 27 min
Chart trend
Position in the Mental Health chart (US), last 90 days.
#1#73#144JulAugSepOct
#49
all-time peak
1
day in the top 50 since Nov 2024
Chart positions
Where Breaking Free from Narcissistic Abuse ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Oct 27, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
I wish I had this resource when I was 19 yo. It would have saved me years and years of pain in abusive relationships. If I can say anything, listen, then listen again. Get your community organized (no matter how small) and leave him. Do no contact, no matter what. You must trust this more than anything else - never contact him again. Your friends and family and community should act as your wall. I think as women we are gifted a faint, small internal voice within ourselves, saying it’s not safe, go. Listen to her. Please, listen and go. What is unknown and not lit is scary, but you are brave. Big hugs to the hosts. Bravo on giving emotions and the abused words and stories and a space to exist 🌻
Ohla00 · Nov 2024
First time listening today. I’ve listened to hours and hours of Narcissistic abuse podcasts.
The one I listened to today episode #63 gave specific examples like a pattern of the N continually critiquing how one does things like the laundry, shifting conversations with
Red Herrings; never able to settle an issue.
The topic of how one speaks to you-I’d like to hear more about this b/c I myself am working on to changing my tone of voice & being more respectful-not demeaning others’ viewpoints.
If that was the model we grew up hearing as children, we may unknowingly be sarcastic.
The more examples the better!
Dr Henry Cloud, author of “Boundaries” calls one key to healthy relationships is
“Mutually Agreed Upon Exceptions” which are often impossible with a Covert or Overt Narcissist.
Dr Clark Fan · May 2024
I’m going through a break up w a woman that drained me of everything. My boundaries, my pride, my money. I became a person who I didn’t know and she made me think itge relationship problems were all me. Stuff I never heard from other partners. I was abusive. I was a narcissist. I had borderline personality disorder. I’ve never heard these things but her family members told me she did but I still thought I was the problem. This podcast is so good I feel they know her personally. lol. It was invaluable to my healing and leaving.
Lorenzofoto · Apr 2024
So informative. I enjoy the interviews and the dual hosts. Like the conversational format and the sharing of studies as well as personal experiences. I would enjoy hearing more about sibling relationships and family narcissism/emotional abuse/financial abuse/ inheritance issues. Thank goodness my life partner is not a toxic person. In my late 50s after my generous and loving father died, my family dynamic totally changed. Suddenly my little brother became a tyrant and his wife and my mother his enablers. At 58, desperate, and wondering “what is wrong with me, why can’t I get along with my family?” , I finally googled the question and thankfully found sites and experts on narcissistic abuse - both covert and overt. Wow. All the signs, the red flags, were there. Never too old to learn, though not a lesson I am thrilled about. I have gone no contact ish and am working to be healthy , still — coming from a culture that honors family , it is hard to speak about this with others or to come to terms with it myself. I keep wondering when my little brother decided he hated me. I just remember babysitting him and protecting him. To this day, despite his being horrible, I worry about him. He is not dead, but lost to me.
cmercedesjodrie · Feb 2024
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Here you find the Apple Podcasts chart positions of Breaking Free from Narcissistic Abuse, its latest episodes to listen to directly, and reviews from listeners. Rankings are updated daily for the United States.
