Shadow gaslighting is a term used to describe the act of using “indirect” tactics to manipulate and discredit a target. It typically involves the gaslighter trying to sow doubts about what’s going on in someone else’s life, by convincing them that their own perception of reality is warped. It is a more subtle form of manipulation, but no less harmful. Shadow gaslighting often occurs in a relationship in which one party is in a position of power over the other. The person in power may begin to sow seeds of doubt in the person’s psyche using indirect and manipulative tactics, making them question their own sense of reality and sanity.