“You know,” she finally says, “a narcissistic parent loves and hates an empathetic child. The empathic child sucks up other people’s feelings like a sponge and tries to make everyone feel better. The narcissist loves them most, because that kid will care about them, take care of their every little need. They eventually hate them, because that’s also the kid most likely to escape—to realize as an adult that the relationship is not healthy.”

