Dealing With Toxic People

You know the feeling: the phone buzzes, the stomach drops, and you are already rehearsing a conversation you will lose all over again. Maybe it is a partner who is charming after every blowup, a parent who turns every no into a verdict on your character, a manager who keeps moving the goalposts, or a friend whose warmth switches off for days. You explain, you apologize, you try again, and somehow ...