ghostlighting

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A portmanteau of “ghosting” and “gaslighting,” ghostlighting is when someone effectively ghosts/slow fades on you, only to randomly pop back up later and reinitiate conversation as if nothing happened, all while acting like you’re crazy if you call them out on it.

Is Ghostlighting the Most Toxic Dating Trend Yet? Kayla Kibbe 2025
THE LATEST TOXIC dating trend combines all the worst parts of ghosting and gaslighting into one confusing emotional rollercoaster. “Ghostlighting is when someone disappears without explanation, and then later tries to rewrite the story to make it seem like you misunderstood what happened,” says Kyler Shumway, Psy.D., a licensed clinical psychologist and founder/CEO of Time for Therapy.

Why Ghostlighting Is This Year's Worst Dating Trend Annita Katee 2025