Narcissistic Personality Disorder

Understanding Narcissism

Narcissism is the excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one’s physical appearance. Narcissistic people are self-centered and selfish, involving a sense of entitlement, a lack of empathy and a need for admiration. They come first; you come second.

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a cluster B personality disorder involving a pattern of grandiosity, lack of empathy and need for admiration developing in early childhood. As the person ages, the traits become more evident.

Grandiosity is an unrealistic sense of superiority and the belief that one is better than others. Narcissists believe themselves to be unique while others are inferior and the same. They are very pretentious, attempting to impress others with the belief of holding greater importance or talent than is actually possessed.

Narcissists are very preoccupied with fantasies of power, beauty, intelligence and success. Their goal is to climb the ladder of success and stomp on everyone below them; some narcissists do have the capability of becoming very successful in life. Their inflated ego actually works to their advantage, but with distaste from many around them.

Because narcissists believe that they are special or unique, they can only associate themselves with other high-status people or groups. If you are not wealthy, brilliant or successful, a narcissist views you as inferior and a waste of time.

A common example is a narcissist walking in the emergency room and impatiently demanding to be seen first by the best physician, only to be told otherwise, resulting in his or her stomping out of the hospital.

Narcissists have the need for excessive admiration. They expect others to praise their talents and success, even when none may be apparent. Because they are self-centered, the view themselves as the center of the universe, with everyone else rotating around them with the expectation of constant attention.

Narcissists attempt to exploit others for their own benefit. They may easily take advantage of vulnerable people in order to gain an upper hand and inflate their ego even more. They lack empathy and have no remorse for anything bad that happens to those around them.

Lastly, narcissists may believe that others are envious of him or her because of their imagined success and power. In reality, nobody is actually envious of them. For narcissists who are wealthy and successful, they may falsely believe that others are envious; in reality, others just do not like them as a person and are not necessarily envious.

Whenever interacting with an arrogant and self-centered person, keep in mind narcissistic personality disorder!

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