My partner said, 'Do you believe in yourself enough to take on this workload?'

It’s hard to see this as manipulation, but we need to be clear. Say something like, 'It’s important that you support me, and if necessary, I’ll explain more, but constantly questioning me demotivates me.' Get clear feedback on their reaction. If they still aren’t correcting their behavior or are being accusatory, there might be a problem 😬.

Honestly, I don't think the question "Do you have confidence in yourself?" is something to be exaggerated. It can be a concern; it doesn't necessarily mean someone is trying to bring you down. But of course, if they keep doing it all the time, that's a different story.

Someone repeating that sentence frequently can sometimes indicate that they are projecting their own anxieties onto you. However, this is not enough to label it as manipulation. If they genuinely have concerns about their workload, you could sit down together and try to analyze 'why they feel this way.'

The situation is even more confusing than you think. Outside of work, they talk like, 'I say these things because I think about them more logically.' It's as if they're implying I'm lacking, but at the same time, they say, 'I'm just worried.'

'It's really off-putting to say something like 'I was just thinking logically.' If the other person has indicated they're uncomfortable and you're still explaining it like that, then their intentions are seriously questionable. What kind of logic is this? Support the concern of the person in front of you!