Editor's note: Lovefraud received the following story from a reader whom we'll call "Carolina." I am completely confused about what actually happened and what is going on. I recently broke up with my boyfriend — we have been on and off for the past 18 years — I met him when I was 10 years old. He made me think he was the perfect man. And that he was loyal honest trustworthy sincere caring my soul mate. I'm not a perfect person — I have made mistakes — but he always made me feel secure. I was really dependent on him — he was my whole world. I've always tried to self-evaluate and fix my behavior and I've always been open about talking to him about everything and anything and I thought he …
Book Review: The psychopaths of the Holocaust
Holocaust Memories: A survey of Holocaust memoirs, histories, novels, and films, by Claudia Moscovici Review by Donna Andersen Most of us have some knowledge of the Holocaust. We've heard about the concentration camps and gas chambers. We know one of Adolf Hitler's objectives during World War II was the "Final Solution" — an attempt to wipe out the Jewish population of Europe. We know that six million Jews were murdered, plus millions more Communists, prisoners of war, gypsies, intellectuals, handicapped people and others. We may have seen movies like Schindler's List and Sophie's Choice. Maybe we read The Diary of Anne Frank. But it's doubtful that we understand the true brutality o …
Video: Finally, how to break your addiction to the sociopath
[youtube_sc url="https://youtu.be/bQp2hwSCWMk"] For all of you who know intellectually that the sociopath is deceitful, abusive, dangerous and unhealthy — yet you struggle to put the person out of your life — this webinar is for you. EFT Tapping to Break Your Addiction to a Sociopath Wednesday, Sept. 25 • 8 - 9 pm ET Instructor: Stacey Vornbrock, MS, LPC You are not imagining your addiction. Stacey Vornbrock, a licensed professional counselor and expert on EFT tapping, explains how your cells really are addicted to certain emotions — emotions that the sociopath is an expert at triggering. This is amazing stuff. These techniques will enable you to finally get the sociopath out of …
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15 typical crises sociopaths create in our lives — and how to start your recovery
Sociopaths can drain us of everything we've got. By the time many of us understand that we're dealing with a human predator, we look around and realize that we are depleted in many areas of our lives. Here are 15 typical crises caused by sociopaths: Our money is gone. We are heavily in debt and our credit is gone. Our housing situation is perilous — we are homeless, in danger of becoming homeless, or stuck living with the sociopath. We don't have reliable transportation. We're not working — the sociopath promised to support us, or we're working for the sociopath, or we are so stressed that we can't work. We've been isolated from family and friends. The sociopath has …
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Podcast: California con woman defrauds her Kiwi husband and his family
Love fraud is the theme of the latest true crime podcast created by ABC (Australia). Snowball tells the story of the fast-talking, charismatic California woman, Lezlie Manukian, who seduced, married and then swindled Greg Wards, a young man from New Zealand, and his family. The story was investigated by Ollie Wards, Greg's brother, who traveled the world to interview people who knew, and in some cases were also defrauded by, the seductive predator. In 2006, Ollie’s brother Greg was backpacking in London when he fell head-over-heels in love with Lezlie. They set up a new life in New Zealand, but only months after their showy wedding, things turned sour. Lezlie vanished from Greg’s lif …
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I was one day away from sending money to the scammer
Editor's note: Lovefraud received the following story from a reader whom we'll call "Clara19."Â I was contacted through Pinterest. The thumbnail picture was a military man...seemed safe enough to chat. Went very interested in a romantic relationship too quickly. I got daily texted graphics proclaiming his love for me. This started to break my caution down. After a few weeks he started mentioning he needed money. He was on an oil rig and ran short of funds to pay shipping costs and I should sent 12,800 dollars to him. He gave me 3 different places to sent money over the course of a week. My bank thought it was fraudulent. I did further online research and found the scammers had …
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Dating apps lead to stronger marriages — really?
In the most recent issue of the Wall Street Journal (August 31, 2019), an essay extolls the miracle of dating apps. I read it with skepticism. Dating apps are making marriages stronger, by Dr. Peggy Drexler, on WSJ.com. To read the full article, you need to be a Wall Street Journal subscriber. So if you're not a subscriber, here's a summary: Research shows, according to the author, that online dating leads to better romantic compatibility and stronger marriages. In 2013, a University of Chicago study found that couples who met online had a higher "relationship quality" and a 25% lower rate of separation and divorce. The study also found that anonymous online communication …
Understanding the Sociopath — a new book by Donna Andersen, author of Lovefraud
If you've been deceived and abused by a sociopath, you've probably asked yourself, "Why is he (or she) doing this?" I answer that question, and many more, in my new book, Understanding the Sociopath — Why antisocials, narcissists and psychopaths break the rules of life. The book goes on sale on October 1, 2019. This book is a curated collection of my Lovefraud blog articles that explains, in bite-sized pieces, how sociopaths behave, what motivates their behavior, and why they do what they do. Approximately 12% of the population — 30 million adults in the U.S. —are sociopaths — people who could be diagnosed with antisocial, narcissistic, borderline, histrionic or psychopathic persona …
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BOOK REVIEW: ‘The Batterer’ describes three types of male abusers
Editor's note: Lovefraud recognizes that sociopaths are both male and female. This article, however, is about male sociopaths. Updated for 2019 Often, the stories told here on Lovefraud about abusive relationships have so much in common that readers jokingly ask each other if they were involved with the same man. Still, there can be profound differences in the stories. For example, quite a few people have said that the men who abused them sometimes exhibited great shame. I was always mystified by this, because I never saw an ounce of shame in my psychopathic ex-husband, James Montgomery. I assumed that those who were exhibiting shame were playacting. Maybe they weren't. A few …
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Feds break up $46 million romance scam and business fraud ring based in California and Nigeria
Last week the FBI charged 80 people, mostly Nigerian con artists, with allegedly running a massive fraud ring that targeted businesses, the elderly and people looking for love online. Fourteen people were arrested in the United States. Eleven were in the Los Angeles area, including the ringleaders, Valentine Iro, 31, and Chukwudi Christogunus Igbokwe, 38, who are Nigerian nationals residing in California. Most of the other people named in the indictment are in Nigeria. The suspects allegedly perpetrated both romance scams and business fraud. Many of the romance scam victims were elderly. One Japanese woman believed she was sending money to a U.S. Army captain stationed in Syria. …