Standing your ground is a powerful thing. So too is knowing how to pick your battles.
The drama triangle is one of the most powerful metaphors that I have come across to make sense of how people get trapped in dysfunctional relationships as Rescuer – Persecutor – Victim. (Usually combinations thereof – check out the work of Stephen Karpman). These roles are swapped about and exist in a relationship known as the drama cycle – as it keeps feeding itself.
Isian Centre of Metaphysics 