Narcissism is a psychiatric disorder that expresses a person’s admiration for and overconfidence. Narcissistic personality disorder is one of many types of personality disorders and involves people’s exaggerated feelings about themselves. These people have a problematic mentality in which they believe that they are superior, that others are less valuable than themselves, and that everyone should admire them intensely. Narcissistic personality disorder affects approximately 6.2% of the world’s population and is more common in men than women. Narcissistic personality disorder is a disorder that can be controlled with psychotherapies and lifestyle changes. In the rest of the article, you can find detailed answers to different questions such as “What is a narcissist?”, “How do narcissists behave?”, “What are the ways to recognize narcissistic people?”
What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder?
Narcissistic personality disorder is basically a situation where a person’s self-confidence is much higher than normal. Underlying all the symptoms of this disorder lies the problem of excessive self-confidence. These people feel superior and more special than other people. They want to be admired, they boast and behave arrogantly. They expect to be treated differently, especially from their close circle. For this reason, they try to persuade the people around them to treat them differently and preferentially. However, when they experience a rupture or are blocked, narcissists’ weaknesses may emerge and they may withdraw and become introverted. Narcissists can often act shy and close themselves off in situations where they are not accepted. However, sometimes they can get angry and get into violent arguments. The most characteristic feature of narcissistic personality disorder is the person’s desire to be the center of attention of others. They see themselves as if they were famous and want everyone to treat them with admiration and interest. Narcissists try to create a world for themselves that suits this situation. They believe that they are the most admired, the most sought-after, and the best in every aspect of this world they have created, and they want to be in an environment that accepts them. However, when they realize that they are not accepted and that they are not treated the way they want, they quickly leave. Narcissists think that everything else is their right. For example, they feel entitled to move to the front of a crowded queue. Narcissistic personality disorder includes several different behavioral patterns. The obsessive narcissist one of these refers to being extremely normative and obsessive. These people get bogged down in very small details and fail to see the main thing. They exhibit exaggerated behavior regarding order and meticulousness. Manipulative narcissist, another form of narcissistic behavior, says that he cares and respects the other person; but it behaves the opposite. He especially wants to control the person he is in an emotional relationship with and ignores their will.
Narcissistic Human Characteristics
When narcissist characteristics are examined, one of the items that stands out is people’s constant desire to be the center of attention. They expect intense attention and admiration from others. They feel entitled to praise, recognition and special privileges. If they are not treated the way they want, they can withdraw into themselves and create a fantasy world. They think that in this world they have created, they will become increasingly successful, recognized by everyone, become famous in a short time and win many awards, and they feel at ease with such thoughts. Narcissistic human characteristics also include different gender differences. As a reflection of gender roles, norms and values, narcissistic women may show more fragile characteristics, while narcissistic men may show more grandiose narcissism characteristics. Some of the general characteristics of narcissistic people are as follows:
- An exaggerated feeling of self-confidence
- Expecting others to admire oneself
- Exaggerating success and abilities
- Feeling superior and wanting to communicate with superior people
- Looking down on others and belittling them
- Expecting favors and favors from everyone
- lack of empathy
- Wanting other people to be jealous of you
- Insisting that he deserves the best of everything
- Setting unrealistic goals (dreaming of unlimited power-money, etc.)
Causes of Narcissistic Personality Disorder
The cause of narcissistic personality disorder is not clear, as in other psychological disorders . As with most mental and personality disorders, it may result from a complex combination of factors. The person’s feelings of inadequacy often underlie narcissistic personality disorder. Exaggerated feelings, which are among the characteristics of narcissism, seeing oneself as superior and seeing the people around one as inferior to oneself, actually show that narcissists have the exact opposite characteristics. Idea of inadequacy is one of the most important causes of narcissistic personality disorder. In order to cope with this negative mindset, people try to present themselves differently to those around them. Some of the factors that cause narcissistic personality disorder can be listed as follows:
- Genetic Factors: Hereditary predisposition, such as if a family member has narcissistic personality disorder.
- Environmental Factors: Traumas experienced in childhood, parents giving excessive attention and praise to the child or constantly criticizing the child, expecting more mature behavior than their age. In addition to these, the family’s indifference towards the child in childhood or physical and mental abuse within the family can also be considered as the most important causes of narcissistic personality disorder.
- Physiological Factors: This condition, known as neurobiology in psychiatry, refers to the disorder of the connection between the brain and behavior and thought.
Diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality Disorder
There is no direct laboratory test to confirm narcissistic personality disorder. It may have similar features to other personality disorders. Many psychiatrists and psychologists can administer the narcissistic personality inventory test for the differential diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder. This disorder causes long-lasting dysfunctional emotions and thoughts and unhealthy communication with people around them. Symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder appear around the age of 8, when children understand how people react to their own behavior. After this age, help can be sought from a health professional, especially for behaviors noticed by parents. For the diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder, experts can also benefit from the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” published by the American Psychiatric Association. The following criteria in this resource can be evaluated for the diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder:
- An exaggerated sense of self-importance
- Need for constant admiration and praise
- Desire to receive special treatment due to perceived superiority
- Overestimation of abilities and success
- Reacting harshly to negative criticism
- Feeding fantasies such as power, success, beauty, fame
- Tendency to use or take advantage of others
- Inability or unwillingness to recognize other people’s feelings and desires
- to be arrogant
Experts evaluate the answers to these items and can plan a treatment accordingly. In addition to this, different neuropsychological tests including other mental disorders can also be applied in the diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder .
Narcissistic Personality Disorder Treatment
Treatment for narcissistic personality disorder often includes talking therapies . If there is depression accompanying narcissistic personality disorder , various psychiatric medications are also included in the treatment. However, if there is no such disorder, narcissistic personality disorder is not treated with antidepressant medications. Thanks to speech therapies, healthy communication with other people is learned and thus relationships can become more enjoyable and sincere. Thanks to therapies, the reasons for the distorted emotions felt and how difficult it is to expect constant attention and appreciation from others can be understood. Other benefits of talk therapy in the treatment of narcissistic personality disorder are:
- Working collaboratively and harmoniously with colleagues and colleagues
- Maintaining personal relationships
- Accepting criticism and failures to discover greater strengths and potential
- Understanding and directing your emotions
- Coping with any sense of self
- Setting goals that are likely to become reality
Apart from these, some lifestyle changes, in addition to therapy, can contribute to the treatment of narcissistic personality disorder. Some of these lifestyle changes are:
- Avoiding alcohol and substance use that may trigger disordered behavior and thoughts
- Identifying and implementing healthy behaviors
- Using relaxation techniques such as yoga or meditation to get away from stress and anxiety
Narcissism is a personality disorder that needs to be corrected and can be treated. If you think that you or a relative has narcissistic feelings, you can apply to a health institution and get professional help.
