Gaslighting, despite bursting its way into our modern vernacular, isn't new on the block. This nefarious mind game has been skewing perspectives and crushing self-esteem for decades, albeit under the radar until recent years. Now, we're shining a spotlight on this 'Jedi mind trick' on steroids that boasts a terrifyingily effective emotional warfare arsenal.

So, what is gaslighting? This wicked dance of manipulation involves one individual connivingly crafting doubts about another's accurate observations, experiences, and viewpoints. The puppeteer's end goal? To erode self-confidence, skew reality perception and gain total control. Robin Stern, Ph.D., author of "The Gaslight Effect" and advisor at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, paints it simply: "Gaslighting manipulates your reality."

At home, the office or even within your social circles, you might have been cast in this psychological production unwittingly. Are you finding yourself constantly apologizing, or doubting your feelings, or even questioning your own value? These are giveaway signs of being ensnared in a gaslighting episode.

Let's cut through the types of gaslighting, a manipulative tool that commutes from bedrooms to boardrooms. The most common variants include intimate partner relationship gaslighting, racial gaslighting, medical gaslighting, and political gaslighting.

When gaslighting is wielded by one partner against the other, it morphs into an emotionally abusive tool that strategically cripples the victim's faith in themselves, their perception of reality, and their will to resist or break free from the abusive partner. This psychological guerrilla warfare is often employed to manipulate and control racial minorities, to dismiss or dismiss the realities of patients' symptoms, and to scramble public opinion on contentious political issues.

Does energy-draining psychological warfare sound familiar? If you're nodding in dreary acknowledgment, worry not, exiting the labyrinth of gaslighting is entirely possible. Rally your support troops, honor your emotions, cultivate mindfulness, and strengthen your resilience. Remember, resuming control of your reality starts with yourself – you are in the driver's seat of your sanity.