Narcissistic Personality Disorder: The Unmasked Surrealism

Content Creator - Aman Sahva

Content Editor - Safa Sajith

Content Illustrator - Nysargi Karnam

Come on children, this time I have an interesting Greek story…

Once upon a time, there lived an extremely handsome and young man named “Narcissus”. One day he saw his reflection in the water for the very first time. He was amused by the reflection. He couldn’t stop gazing and admiring it. He then spent the rest of his life at the water’s edge!

This Greek mythology is considered as one of the earliest roots of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). DSM-5 recognizes NPD as an important disorder. NPD is rarely diagnosed and reported. Only 1-6% of the world’s population is estimated to have NPD, then how come it is recognized as a crucial disorder? Well, mostly the people around the person with NPD such as partners, parents, friends and co-workers are the ones directly & significantly affected by this disorder. So the chances of undiagnosed cases are higher than what analysts can estimate.

Let's dive more into NPD and its symptoms

NPD is an enduring pattern of inner experience and behaviour that highlights self-centeredness and self-admiration. People with NPD often lack empathy. Their life is all about power, success, or any sort of personal gain; a state of fantasy or out of reality where the only worry is about whether the world is revolving around them or not. Well, there are roles for other people too in their lives. For them, the rest of the world is obliged to support, praise, and appreciate them. Yes, they crave an extreme level of attention and recognition. They're very sensitive to criticism and others’ success.

Common myths about NPD

It’s a bitter reality that misconceptions are built between the gaps of knowledge to seal it with toxic perceptions that disguise themselves as truth. So let’s clear that knowledge gap to balance our thoughts and facts about NPD.

It’s a wrong perception that narcissism is only found with people having NPD. Well, during adolescence, and in many other diverse phases of our life and scenarios, we may experience or see people being self-centred, arrogant, and haughty. These narcissistic traits are common at times and are non-related with NPD.

Societies try to generalize everyone with NPD to be extremely confident, violent, immoral, charming but evil master manipulators who jeopardise their near and dear ones.

However, people with NPD lead their lives trying to meet the standards of their fantasy world. They try to balance their fluctuating self-esteem. To survive, they try to defend themselves and never intend to hurt anyone directly. They often try to keep their word and not cheat. They might also appear boring and harmless. To meet their goals, they try maintaining consciousness and cautiousness. They alter the world around them to achieve it. So not every person having NPD is malignant and evil.

Treatment; its challenges and limits

People with NPD rarely seek out treatment. And mostly, it’s out of family and peer pressure. This can be challenging. So the long-term treatments are often reduced to short-term treatments and medications. Short-term treatments are for symptom reduction and control of extreme behavioural disorders.

However, three commonly suggested treatment alternatives are:

• Individual Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: It’s highly effective although it’s potentially difficult and lengthy.

• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT): It’s beneficial to alter destructive thoughts and behavioural patterns.

• Psychotropic Medications: This method is less efficient. However, this helps in reducing the extreme levels of anxiety and depression that comes along with NPD.

Coping and managing relationships with people having NPD

Dealing with a loved one having NPD can be edgy. It can be wildly and confusingly toxic. So it’s necessary to discuss how to cope up with them and manage situations wisely.

Few guidelines to never to quit:

1. Accept the reality: It ain’t going to be easy to deal with.

2. Never try to manipulate them: Changes may not appear. This will instead disappoint your efforts.

3. Challenging them can always backfire: To maintain their self-esteem and values, they may go up to any extent.

4. Surround yourself with supportive people and thoughts: The negativity from the person having NPD will lead to a pessimistic approach. So it’s important to make sure that your positive shield is there to protect you.

5. Learn to recognize their usual pattern and remain considerate while dealing with them.

6. Set clear boundaries. You might not be able to force him or her to respect you but you can refuse to be disrespected by setting limits.

7. Your constant encouragement to seek treatment and help may lead to a positive response. However, this can never guarantee their willingness to get treated fully.

Above all, leading a positive life can help. Avoiding consumption of alcohol and drugs, exercising to boost mood, engaging in relaxation yoga can help in reducing anxiety and pessimism. It may take time to heal, but stay motivated. Accept the risks to move forward.

Let hope lead your fearless life.