That's Not What "Gaslighting" Means
mental healthcare as memes
The other day an acquaintance was describing a Catholic ministry they didn’t like. They said this ministry harmed them and maybe it did. They were going off about the un-pastoral care they received and how much the CEO made, and when I casually mentioned that I had actually benefitted quite a bit from this ministry’s materials, I was accused of gaslighting the person by sharing my experience.
Friends, this is not what gaslighting means1. This is the internet-version of gaslighting, a word that’s now tossed around so casually its been rendered basically meaningless.
This is just one example of a thousand I could give of therapeutic terms being flung around like candy. Every priest who tells homilies about their own lives is a narcissist. Every abuser within the church is a sociopath. And every person who had a positive experience with an organization you think is harmful is a gaslighter.