Now you can finally learn the truth about the manipulative, aggressive, narcissistic, and other responsibility-challenged people in your life.  These are the people who are content with themselves but who make everyone around them miserable.  After several unavoidable delays, orders can now be placed for Character Disturbance: The Phenomenon of our Age. The international success of my first book, In Sheep’s Clothing:  Understanding... 

One of the thing my years of study on abusive relationships has taught me is that many times, victims of abuse trap themselves in their destructive relationships because they try too hard to understand.  An example of this comes in some correspondence I recently received: “My boyfriend and I have lived together for nearly 5 years. He doesn’t fit the accepted profile of an “abuser.”  He isn’t jealous and doesn’t... 

Having given literally hundreds of workshops on the topic of character disturbance, my audiences (helping professionals and lay persons alike) always seem to want to know how the various disturbed characters came to be the way they are and what can be done to help them change. I get similar questions from readers of my writings and blog articles as well. You can boil down many of the underlying assumptions of traditional schools of psychological... 

Folks often ask me if Covert-Aggressive personalities (manipulators) and other disturbed characters really understand themselves or know what they’re doing.  I always reply that most of the time, such personalities know exactly who they are and what they’re up to.  This is something others find very hard to believe.  But to illustrate the point, I thought I’d reproduce a portion of an article I wrote about a year ago... 

Recently, someone introduced me to the US TV series Dexter, based on the novels of the same title. It’s about a psychopath (alt: sociopath) who works as a forensic scientist analyzing blood splatter patterns for a police department. The series has won several awards and garnered unusual viewer support for an independently-produced drama series. The main character, Dexter, is an intriguing study. He is no doubt a psychopath, and he is... 

In the process of writing my soon to be released book Character Disturbance (Parkurst Brothers Publishers - In Press, scheduled release: July 31, 2010), I assembled what experience has taught me are the most essential lessons a person must learn to develop a sound, responsible character.  The “ten commandments” of character are just one of the major features of my new book that address what has to occur in a person’s character... 

A while back, I received the following letter from Jane in Oregon: I read your book In Sheep’s Clothing for the first time and really liked it.  I am also happy to say that I have found your website and other blogs that feature your work and have read many of your articles. I recognize myself as a kind of “neurotic” person like you describe and the man I’m dating as a disturbed character.  Unfortunately, it wasn’t... 

Occasionally, I get asked questions by blog readers that reflect the degree to which commonly accepted explanations for human behavior actually help make matters worse for people in relationships with disturbed characters.  Here is an example: I am in love with someone I believe must be a “commitment phobic.” I am not a psychologist nor am I in the medical field. But when my boyfriend flipped out on me for no apparent reason,... 

Manipulative people have always been with us.  Manipulation is a timeless problem, but it has also been increasing in prevalence over the years.  Many years ago, I started taking note of a certain kind of personality.  These people could be quite charming and appear benign but also could engage in some of the most ruthless, underhanded behavior.  They knew how to get the better of people.  Their victims were frequently caught unaware.... 

Recently, I received the following inquiry from a blog reader that fairly well summarizes the kinds of issues many therapists face today when trying to help people with their life’s difficulties: I don’t know what I should do.  I’m in love with a married man.  He has  kids from both in and outside of his marriage. My mom can’t accept even the thought of him being with me. I do realize the problems we’d face...