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How to Leave a Narcissist and Never Go Back

You CAN escape the pull of an emotional black hole

Jenni Brannan
8 min readJan 28, 2023

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I was married for 9,027 days; 24 years, 8 months, 19 days. This series of articles captures what I’ve learned through deciding to leave and then leaving the marriage. I was able, in a very short span of time (couple of hours) to list over 65 of those things. It has been much harder, somehow, to publish more than the first 20.

I left on a Friday. I had made a deliberate plan, executing it like a jewelry thief planning her last heist. I did feel like I was stealing, on some level. I was stealing myself back.

There is no good time to leave. Go.

Second guessing yourself keeps you in the situation. Wondering if you’re doing the right thing, waiting until the kids have moved out or until you’ve done enough therapy to make the marriage work… this time — these are legitimate questions and delaying tactics. Take all the time you need to work through your decision.

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Jenni Brannan
Jenni Brannan

Written by Jenni Brannan

Writing to peel back the layers, expose the juicy middle and maybe find something unexpected.

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