How To Identify Fake Apologies And Genuine Apologies

Have you ever been on the receiving end of an apology that felt insincere & fell flat?  It might have been someone repeating the words “I’m sorry,” but with an entirely different intention.  Fake apologies are unfortunately all too common, especially with narcissists & they can leave the recipient feeling more hurt & confused than before. It’s important to be able to recognize the difference between genuine & fake apologies in order to protect yourself from this manipulative behavior.

A genuine apology is one that conveys a sense of remorse, understanding, & an intention to make things better in the future.  It is a sincere attempt to make amends for the hurt that has been caused.  The words may be something like, “I’m sorry for what I said & I know it was wrong.  I’ll try to do better in the future.”  The person apologizing is clearly taking responsibility for their actions, & is expressing a willingness to change their behavior.

A fake apology, on the other hand, is one that is not genuine.  It is an attempt to make the other person feel better without the person apologizing actually taking responsibility for the hurt that they caused.  Fake apologies often include excuses or phrases such as, “if I hurt you” or “If I said or did something that hurt you,” instead of, “I hurt you” or “I know what I said or did hurt you.”  They may also include phrases such as “I’m sorry you feel that way” instead of “I’m sorry I said that.”  Fake apologies are simply an attempt to avoid taking responsibility or making changes in their behavior.  They can leave the victim feeling even more hurt by the apology than by the behavior the person did in the first place that warranted the apology.

People who give fake apologies are often trying to manipulate the situation in order to get what they want or to avoid any consequences for their actions.  Fake apologies are a way for people to re-wind the situation & shift the focus away from their own behavior.

Fake apologies can also be a way for people to alleviate their own guilt.  By giving a fake apology, they can appear to be taking responsibility for their actions without actually having to do anything to make things better or change their behavior.  It can be a way to appease their conscience without actually having to do any work.

There are some signs to be aware of regarding fake apologies.  Fake apologies don’t include a genuine expression of remorse.  The person apologizing doesn’t appear to feel any guilt or shame.  Also, as mentioned earlier, they often include phrases such as, “I’m sorry if I hurt you” or “I’m sorry you feel that way” rather than, “I’m sorry I hurt you.”  They may also include excuses or attempts to shift the blame onto the person who expects the apology as a way to deflect the conversation off the original topic.

Fake apologies also don’t show a genuine desire to do better in the future.  The person’s behavior doesn’t change.  They may do the same thing again even after their so called apology.  Or, if the behavior is mentioned again, they say things like, “I said I was sorry!  What else do you want?”, “I won’t keep apologizing for this!” or, “I can’t help it!  This is just how I am!”

It can be difficult at first to tell the difference between genuine & fake apologies, but it’s important to be able to recognize the signs so that you can protect yourself from manipulation.  Pay attention to the person’s words & behavior after the apology to determine whether or not it’s genuine. 

Those Who Appear One Way But Are Truly Another

Jesus had plenty to say to people that didn’t behave in a Godly way.  One such time appears in Matthew 23:27-28.  The Amplified translation says, “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. ²⁸ So you, also, outwardly seem to be just and upright to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”

These verses are especially interesting to me, because they point to an all too familiar behavior that people have done pretty much forever – appear one way yet they are truly another. 

A variation on this behavior can be somewhat normal.  We all put our best face forward on job interviews or when dating someone new that we really like.  We also may act somewhat differently than normal depending on the people with whom we are spending time.  I realize I am quite different with my best friend that I have been close to since 1988 than I am with other people I have known for only a short time.

The difference is that behaving in those ways in those situations isn’t presenting an entirely different version of who we really are.  It’s simply calling attention to good qualities that are already there, or being more comfortable with one person over another.  It doesn’t make you a hypocrite to behave like this.  You are simply adapting to each situation.

A person who presents themselves as good or even holy yet is quick to gossip, steal, cheat, judge, avoid helping those truly in need unless they can get recognition for doing so, use or manipulate other people is the type of person Jesus was speaking to in the afore mentioned Scriptures.  People like this clearly have impure motives & are acting out of their own best interests.  They are the “whitewashed tombs full of dead men’s bones.”

Narcissists have this behavior down pat, especially covert narcissists.  They want people to think only good of them, & will do whatever necessary to make that happen.  Narcissists seem to know exactly how to act to make whoever they are with at that moment think the absolute best of them.  Yet, their victims have seen the monster living behind the mask.  I remember shortly after my husband & I got married.  We had dinner with his parents one night, & his mother told me how terribly disappointed she & his father were that he married me instead of an ex girlfriend.  I think it was the next time we saw my in-laws at a party they hosted, where this same mother in-law introduced me to her sister as, “my beautiful daughter in-law.” 

When you are in a close relationship with the monster, seeing them acting in full evil character, & you see other people foolishly, blindly buying their act, it is shocking.  It’s shocking that the person who treats you so cruelly can be the same person who appears so charismatic, generous, funny, fun loving or whatever this person is pretending to be.  It’s also shocking that so many people blindly believe this act & will defend the narcissist fiercely.  How can they not see that this is clearly an act?!

The one good thing about having experienced this behavior is that you learn how to spot it in other people when the average person may miss it entirely.  While I wouldn’t suggest you be glad you experienced what you did to learn this lesson, I would at least suggest that you use that knowledge to protect yourself from people like this in the future.  Avoid those whitewashed tombs full of dead men’s bones & instead focus on relationships with genuine & good people.  Your life will be much better for it!

Non Apologies

Non apologies are common among narcissists & their enabling flying monkeys, so you need to be aware of them.

 

A non apology means someone says they are sorry but it isn’t a genuine apology.  Some examples are:

 

• I’m sorry you feel that way.
• I’m sorry for whatever you think I did.
• I’m sorry if I did something that upset you.
• I’m sorry I said/did that, but if you wouldn’t have said/done what you did, I wouldn’t have said/done what I did.
• I was just upset when I said that.

 

While these apologies do contain the words “I’m sorry”, they certainly aren’t real apologies.  They accept no responsibility for the bad behavior or make any promises this will not happen again or of better behavior in the future.

 

They also imply something is wrong with the person on the receiving end of the apology.  If someone tells you they were just upset when they did something bad, the average person with empathy will feel badly for being upset in the first place because the abuser was upset for what they did & can’t be held accountable for their actions.  If the abuser blames you for upsetting them enough to do something bad, the average person will feel badly for doing what they did that “made” the abuser do what they did.

 

A genuine apology is very different.  Even if the person making the apology doesn’t understand why the person offended feels as they do, the offender will promise not to do whatever they did again.  They will admit they were being insensitive or thoughtless.  They promise to amend their behavior & do it.  There isn’t judgment or criticism because someone is upset.  There isn’t blame.  There is simply love, concern & a desire not to hurt a person again.

 

When a narcissist or flying monkey gives you a non apology, look out.  They are going to resent you for “making” them apologize & you will be punished.  They may do the behavior again or do something worse.  They may act like nothing happened, which can invalidate your feelings or make you wonder if you imagined what happened or exaggerated how bad it was.  When this happens, focus on the truth & what you remember.  Keeping a journal can help you, because you can look back on the events which helps you focus on the truth rather than the narcissist’s version of it.  And as always, pray.  Ask God to help you to stay focused on the truth & to help you act accordingly.

Mirroring And Narcissists

One common tool narcissists use is mirroring.

Mirroring is when a person pretends to share similar interests to you, or to feel & respond to things as you do, when the truth is they don’t share your interests, feelings or responses.  They also can mimic your non-verbal acts, such as smiling when you smile, crossing their legs when you cross yours.  Some even try to mimic personality traits, like empathy.  Since they have no empathy of their own, they watch how you display empathy, & then try to act like you in order to make you or others think they have empathy.

Pretending they are like you gives them a way to bond with you.  It makes you feel comfortable with them, because you believe you two are so much alike.  After all, most people prefer to be with other people who are similar to them.

Narcissists use mirroring in order to lure new victims into a relationship with them or to patch ones they have damaged.  The bonding that mirroring can form is a powerful tool, & narcissists know this all too well.  When you are close with someone, you want to believe the best of them, & you don’t want to confront them if they have hurt you.  You are more likely to let things slide if you love a person, whereas if an acquaintance did such things to you, you wouldn’t have a problem speaking up to them.

Although sometimes people naturally act like each other, mirroring is different.  In some cases, such as very close friends or couples who have been married for a long time, the closeness of their relationship means they automatically adapt some of each other’s traits & mannerisms over time.  It just happens without even trying.  Mirroring however, happens immediately, & being in a close relationship has nothing to do with it.