Healing and Hypnotherapy Volume 7, Special Annual Issue, 15 June 2023 | Page 34

What is a saviour complex ?


 


Understand Saviour Complex in Relationships With These Signs

• What is a saviour complex ?
• Is the saviour complex codependency ?
• What causes someone to have a saviour complex ?
• Signs of saviour complex in your relationship
• In a nutshell
Are you proud of how much you help others ? After all , they need you and couldn ’ t cope without you , or could they ? There ’ s a fine line between helping and hindering . It ’ s easier than you think to fall into the patterns of a savior complex in relationships .

What is a saviour complex ?


Everything in life has a dark side . Even something seemingly altruistic as helping others , can hurt them and yourself . You could face a savior complex in relationships if you find yourself helping people more than they help themselves .
Simply put , the savior complex ’ s meaning revolves around how much you do for others . It ’ s when you put aside your needs to help those around you . More specifically , you end up doing things for them rather than letting them help themselves . There ’ s a big difference between helping people by doing things for them versus guiding them to work out their solutions . In other words , a savior complex in relationships boils down to whether you tell them what to do or enable them to figure it out for themselves .
In terms of hero complex psychology , there is no official medical diagnosis which is why you also see the terms white knight syndrome or messiah syndrome . Nevertheless , people with bipolar disorder , delusional disorder , and schizophrenia can tend to develop saviour complex symptoms , as this article on messiah complex disorder explains .