The Lifeworks Group, Inc.

By: Christine Hammond, LMHC, NCC Art imitates life and so it is with “Flying Monkeys”. The term was coined from the movie “The Wizard of Oz” in which the Wicked Witch dispatches moneys to fly and get Dorothy and her dog. The monkeys obey her command, doing her dirty work for her, taunting and terrorizing Dorothy as she tries in vain to get back home. And so it is with narcissists and their flying monkeys. As if a magical spell has taken over, the bond between the narcissist and their flying monkeys is one of unwavering loyalty even in the face of danger. When the narcissist wants to evoke some punishment on a target they dispatch their henchmen (aka flying monkeys) to do their bidding. Unfortunately, this can and often does include abusive behavior such as guilt-tripping, twisting the truth, gaslighting, assaults, threats, and violence. This keeps them out of harms way and able to claim innocence if caught. To be sure, not just narcissists are capable of conjuring up ...

By Christine Hammond, MS, LMHC  It wasn’t until counseling that Tim realized he was married to a narcissist. Again. And unfortunately, again. The narcissism in his first wife was obvious. Her obsession with power and control of his life and money alienated her from their kids. His second wife was so preoccupied with her appearance that he lost track with the number of plastic surgeries she had. And wife number three was on a six-month silent treatment streak with him. Tim was a successful entrepreneur having started four companies, all of which continued to function well. While he was able to see narcissism in his employees and use to his advantage, somehow, he missed this ability in his personal life. Now with divorce number three on the horizon, Tim decided that it was time to figure out why. Looking back over his marriages, Tim began to see similarities in how the relationship started, when the balance of power shifted, and what caused him to stay. His ego wa...

By: Christine Hammond LMHC Joey admitted that he lost interest in his favorite sport. Already a state champion with prospects to be a national star, each day he didn’t practice he was throwing away that possibility. His work also suffered. Where he once thrived and was revered for his hard work, he now was barely keeping it together and on the verge of failure. His relationships deteriorated as well. He lost friendships and was at odds with the people he said he loved the most. But there was one area of his life that was thriving. Every day and sometimes well into the night, Joey would play video games. It started off with just a few games but then quickly escalated into more. He made an agreement with his family not to play any games that were rated R, had nudity, or had live chats. But now he was doing just that and hiding it. When he played, he felt powerful, excited, energized and confident in his fantasy worlds. In the real world, he felt anxious, depressed, ov...