okay i have a few questions (sorry im in grad school rn studying to be a therapist so im curious abt this type of thing😭) but first how did u figure out that u have NPD? & r u currently seeing a therapist for it? how were u able to accept that u have it? like what was that process like bc ik its typically difficult for ppl w NPD to come to terms w the fact that they have a disorder. i also wanna know whats smth u think not a lot of ppl know abt NPD or is a common misunderstanding/misconception?
i also struggle with relationships. i tend to think they are way more serious then they are. it isn’t impossible, but it’s harder for me to enter and maintain relationships than it would be for someone without NPD. but that doesn’t mean we are cold and manipulative, some are for sure but it just means we don’t understand interpersonal connections because we have a warped sense of self
THANK U SO MUCH FOR THIS!!! bc of the fact that u dont take criticism well do u think u find urself making excuses or reasons for why the other person would be in the wrong or why what theyre doing makes u right? has therapy helped u catch urself doing this?? i have BPD myself so i kinda relate to u in that aspect where i also have to monitor my mind constantly to make sure its behaving bc a majority of the time its NOT & it 10000% messes w my relationships
yes constantly. i have to struggle to not make excuses for what i do, and i do tend to blame others when things go wrong. therapy has helped me recognize when it happens sometimes at least. i feel you about constantly having to monitor my mind, it’s the only way i feel like i don’t betray myself haha
that’s another misconception is that people who have NPD don’t know it. a lot of people don’t know that they have NPD sure, but not all. a self aware person with NPD will understand most, if not all of, their actions, but a lot of self aware NPD people will use this as an excuse for less than savory behavior. myself included sometimes. and just because we know we have NPD, doesn’t guarantee that we are making good changes
when u do decide to make those good changes do u feel like it comes from a place of understanding how ur actions might impact others & changing to try to improve their lives or ur quality of interactions w them or is it more like u realize that making those changes would be a benefit to u? ofc the reasoning may change based on circumstance but just overall do u feel like one motivates u more?