You keep asking yourself the same question at 2 a.m.: "Why can't I just get over this?"

You've read the articles. You know the word narcissist. You can even name what happened to you. But your body still reaches for them in your sleep. You still flinch at their favorite song in the grocery store. You still wonder, quietly, if you were the problem all along.

You weren't. And this book will show you, slowly and without shame, exactly why the love felt so real, why the leaving feels so impossible, and why healing is taking longer than anyone told you it would.

Written by a survivor who lived it and studied it, Love Shouldn't Feel Like This weaves together a deeply personal memoir with the clinical frameworks of narcissistic abuse recovery. The result is a book that feels like a friend who finally gets it, and a therapist who can finally name it.

What You'll Discover Inside:

• Why you were targeted: And why it has nothing to do with being weak, naive, or "too much."
• The three-phase cycle: Idealize, devalue, and discard mapped onto real moments you'll recognize.
• "Life bombing": Why losing them meant losing your friends, your music, and your entire world.
• Recognize manipulation: Spot covert put-downs, word salad, and hoovering before they pull you back in.

This Book Is For You If...

You are a woman who is trying to understand a long-term relationship that looked fine from the outside and quietly destroyed you on the inside. You don't have bruises to point to. You have a smaller laugh, a quieter voice, a mother you stopped calling, and a self you barely recognize in the mirror.

BONUS: Includes a companion workbook with reflection prompts to help you reclaim the parts of yourself you quietly gave away.