Woman Says She Left Her Husband After 18 Months of Marriage and Realized She Had Overlooked ‘Narcissistic’ Behavior

A video created by TikTok creator @christine.elizabeth, which received more than 6.8 million views and nearly 11,000 comments as of publication, details the events Christine says led her to divorce her husband, whom she described as a narcissist. The marriage lasted just a year and a half, and Christine said she is now sharing her experience in hopes of helping other women who may find themselves in similar situations.

Christine explained that she got married at 28 years old and was in the process of divorcing her husband just 18 months later. She said her wedding had been shared with more than 10 million followers across different platforms, meaning many of those same people would now be witnessing her divorce.

Christine said she decided to publicly share her divorce because she unknowingly married someone she now believes displayed narcissistic behavior. She said she hoped her experience could help other women who may be in similar situations.

Christine added that many women who could relate to her story reached out to her personally and told her that seeing her move on from her husband encouraged them to do the same. She explained that she and many other women may not immediately recognize narcissistic abuse while they are in a relationship. Christine also emphasized the difference between narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) and having narcissistic traits.

The backstory of her marriage began in 2020, when Christine was living in New York City and working on Wall Street. She described herself as an introvert who had become isolated before meeting her husband on Hinge.

When they first began talking, Christine said he presented himself as someone who was strong in his faith, like she was, and who had serious intentions for a relationship. She said she believed him and also appreciated that he worked at a Wall Street firm because her own schedule was demanding.

Christine Says Their Differences in Faith Revealed Other Problems in the Relationship

Christine said that toward the end of 2020, she began noticing that they had different core values when it came to faith. Despite having been married for only a year and a half, she told him she wanted to separate.

Initially, Christine said he accepted the decision. Shortly afterward, however, he began messaging her in an attempt to rekindle the relationship. She recalled that he mentioned putting money down on a ring that had already gained 14% in value because he had decided he wanted to marry her.

Christine said she initially did not understand what the ring had to do with their breakup. She later came to view the behavior as an example of what she described as “love bombing.” She said she did not know the terminology at the time, but the behavior felt familiar because she had grown up around manipulation, love bombing and gaslighting.

Christine said people displaying narcissistic behavior may attempt to lure a former partner back into a relationship after initially accepting a breakup. She explained that they may point to how much they have invested in the person or the relationship in an attempt to influence the other person's decision.

When her birthday came around in July, Christine said her ex-husband inserted himself into her celebration by buying her a cake and positioning himself as though they were still together. She also said he made a point of supporting her at her new job because he was familiar with the firm where she worked.

Christine admitted that she accepted his support but later realized that continuing to give him access to her life may have meant she was not establishing firm boundaries. She cautioned women against allowing an ex to remain consistently involved in their lives under the guise of friendship, saying they should establish clear boundaries if they want to move on.

Christine also said her ex-husband rarely gave her space. She said he would spend time with her on weekends and take advantage of other opportunities to be around her. According to Christine, his continued presence also made it difficult for potential new partners to enter her life.

In reaction to the video, many commenters were in support of Christine's decision to walk away from her narcissistic husband. They also gave their own experiences of dealing with narcissistic partners, and could relate to many of the tactics she mentioned.

One commenter said after years since splitting with her ex-husband, she could now see how he love-bombed her at the start of the relationship. The wrote, "When I met my ex-husband we went on five dates in the first week. I thought it was cute and sweet but now I see it was love bombing and so unhealthy."

Another commenter advised people who are dating to marry to see a therapist early on. They wrote, "I urge people who are looking to marry to have a therapist before so they can spot the red flags in dating stages."

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify Christine’s account of her marriage, divorce or the behavior she described. The characterization of her former husband and the events surrounding their relationship are based solely on @christine.elizabeth’s account.