Gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse in which false information is presented

with the intent of making a victim doubt his or her own memory, perception and
sanity. It may range simply from the denial by an abuser that previous abusive
incidents ever occurred, up to the staging of bizarre events by the abuser with the
intention of disorienting the victim.

The term "gaslighting" comes from the play Gas Light and its film adaptations, in
which a husband secretly dims the gas lights in the house and, when his wife remarks
on it, he claims that she is mistaken. This is done to convince the woman that she
cannot trust her own judgment, and so will not be believed if she tries to report other
strange things that are genuinely occurring, which the husband wishes to keep secret.
The term is now also used in clinical and research literature

With respect to women in particular, Hilde Lindemann argued that "in gaslighting
cases...ability to resist depends on her ability to trust her own judgements."[6]
Establishing "counterstories" to that of the gaslighter may help the victim re-acquire
or even for the first time "acquire ordinary levels of free agency".[

Psychologist Martha Stout states that sociopaths frequently use gaslighting tactics.
Sociopaths consistently transgress social mores, break laws, and exploit others, but
are also typically charming and convincing liars who consistently deny wrongdoing.
Thus, some who have been victimized by sociopaths may doubt their perceptions.[7]
Jacobson and Gottman report that some physically abusive spouses may gaslight their
partners, even flatly denying that they have been violent.[2]

Psychologists Gertrude Gass and William C. Nichols use the term "gaslighting" to
describe a dynamic observed in some cases of marital infidelity: "Therapists may
contribute to the victim's distress through mislabeling the women's reactions. [...] The
gaslighting behaviors of the husband provide a recipe for the so-called 'nervous
breakdown' for some women [and] suicide in some of the worst situations."[8]

Are You Being Gaslighted?

Check for these telltale signs:
1. You constantly second-guess yourself.
2. You wonder, “Am I being too sensitive?” a dozen times a day.
3. You wonder frequently if you are a “good enough”
girlfriend/wife/employee/friend/daughter.
4. You have trouble making simple decisions.
5. You think twice before bringing up innocent topics of conversation.
6. You frequently make excuses for your partner’s behavior to friends and family.
7. Before your partner comes home from work, you run through a checklist in your
head to anticipate anything you might have done wrong that day.
8. You buy clothes for yourself, furnishings for your apartment, or other personal
purchases thinking about what your partner would like instead of what would make
you feel great.