Hello, RFrogger, and welcome.

You intuitively sense that those who are demeaning and critical have their own problems. What they are doing is releasing the unconscious ideas they really have of themselves. It's all in an effort to try to make themselves feel better inside and look better outside.

What they don't know is that what they are really doing is revealing more of themselves than anything else. Don't EVER JUDGE YOURSELF based on somebody else's opinion of who you are. In fact, never judge yourself at all.

Just live by your deepest inner principles and you will be fine.

Continue to see your psychiatrist and learn more about the motivations of some people. You will learn which type to steer clear of and who will ultimately be your real friends. Correct opinions are the greatest help to you. But you must remember to avoid judging yourself based on somebody else's idea of who you are.

My first inclination is to retaliate against those by saying to them, "do you know that you are really revealing your own unconscious feelings about yourself and trying to attach
them to someone else so that you might be able to feel better about yourself? What an
unhappy life you must have! Is that the reason you drink and use drugs so frequently?"

But that goes too far and is cruel in one sense; maybe if you left out the "Is that the reason you drink and use drugs so frequently?" would make it more appropriate. you should grow strong enough in time, though, that you may be able simply to dismiss them as unhappy people. I hope you can do that. There are too many nice people in the world to have to endure the friendship of the kind you have been choosing.

You have to protect a fragile ego and learn to calm yourself within.

Take care and continue to post as you wish.

Genetic