The most common characteristic I have found with all victims of narcissistic abuse is the failure to trust oneself which results in a very strong feeling of self-doubt. Victims give their power to the narcissist in their lives to define them and their reality. Little by little they surrender their own sense of reality to this external person and little by little their self-esteem is eroded.
Wisdom, right there. Which is why... when you are in the middle of a dysfunctional controlling relationship, you
can't trust yourself because your instincts have been replaced by someone else's voice in your head.
If I had listened to my intuition, I would never have gotten involved with my AXH in the first place. There were so many red flights and warning sirens going off that it was almost deafening. Truth is, I ignored them because I had just been summarily dumped by a boyfriend and was in no shape to get involved with anyone. I was lonely and glad that someone wanted me. Easy prey. Like the caribou calf with the bum leg.