A compilation of information gathered from all over the web…

Pathological narcissism occurs in a spectrum of severity. In its more extreme forms, it is narcissistic personality disorder. NPD is considered to result from a person’s belief that he or she is flawed in a way that makes the person fundamentally unacceptable to others. This belief is held below the person’s conscious awareness; such a person would typically deny thinking such a thing if questioned. In order to protect themselves against the intolerably painful rejection and isolation they imagine would follow if others recognized their supposedly defective nature, such people make strong attempts to control others’ view of them and behavior towards them.

The common use of the term “narcissism” refers to some of the ways people defend themselves against this narcissistic dynamic: a concern with one’s own physical and social image, a preoccupation with one’s own thoughts and feelings, and a sense of grandiosity. There are, however, many other behaviors that can stem from narcissistic concerns, such as immersion in one’s own affairs to the exclusion of others, an inability to empathize with others’ experience, interpersonal rigidity, an insistence that one’s opinions and values are “right,” and a tendency to be easily offended and take things personally.

To the extent that people are pathologically narcissistic, they can be controlling, blaming, self-absorbed, intolerant of others’ views, unaware of other’s needs and of the effects of their behavior on others, and insistent that others see them as they wish to be seen.

People who are overly narcissistic commonly feel rejected, humiliated and threatened when criticized. To protect themselves from these dangers, they often react with disdain, rage, and/or defiance to any slight, real or imagined. To avoid such situations, some narcissistic people withdraw socially and may feign modesty or humility.

Though individuals with NPD are often ambitious and capable, the inability to tolerate setbacks, disagreements or criticism, along with lack of empathy, make it difficult for such individuals to work cooperatively with others or to maintain long-term professional achievements. With narcissistic personality disorder, the person’s perceived fantastic grandiosity, often coupled with a hypomanic mood, is typically not commensurate with his or her real accomplishments.

The interpersonal relationships of patients with NPD are typically impaired due to the individual’s lack of empathy, disregard for others, exploitativeness, sense of entitlement, and constant need for attention. They frequently select as mates, and engender in their children, “co-narcissism,” which is a term coined to refer to a co-dependent personality style similar to co-alcoholism and co-dependency. Co-narcissists organize themselves around the needs of others. They feel responsible for others, accept blame readily, are eager to please, defer to other’s opinions, and fear being considered selfish if they act assertively.

It is unusual for people to seek therapy for NPD. Subconscious fears of exposure of inadequacy are often met with defensive disdain of therapeutic processes.

Because NPD contributes to negative, stressful life experiences characterized by the mental health field as “clinically significant distress” or “impairment”, co-existing conditions of depression and anxiety are typical, and can ameliorate with pharmaceutical interventions. NPD sufferers are more likely to seek such treatment from primary care physicians for relief of immediate symptoms of distress / depression.

Patients with NPD are particularly susceptible to problems of substance abuse, impulse control, and suicidal and/or self-destructive behavior, which may shorten their lives.

Patients should be advised that their patterns of perception and response are the results of some combination of inheritance and personal history, and that recovery is therefore likely to be a prolonged process, requiring effort and attention. The relevance of ongoing psychotherapy to long-standing vulnerabilities requires frequent reemphasis by the physician.

Most clinical writers seem unaware that narcissists’ self-reports are unreliable. This is troubling, considering that lying is the most common complaint about narcissists and that, in many instances, defects of empathy lead narcissists to wildly inaccurate misinterpretations of other people’s speech and actions, so that they may believe that they are liked and respected despite a history of callous and exploitative personal interactions.

– my personal experiences with a narcissist are still way to fresh for me to be able to write about at the moment. Frankly, I’ve been accused of being a narcissist myself, but I’m glad to say I’m very aware of my shortcomings and selfishness and I know exactly when I’m being hurtful. It’s not a subconscious thing.  I’m happy to report that I am a selfish, self-absorbed, arrogant, intelligent, procrastinating, asshole; Nothing less, nothing more.

Please feel free to add your feelings and/or experiences … No names please, thats not what this is about.  

 Marx and Engels’ Communist Manifesto.  Enjoy.

All I have to say is … WOW

A few months ago, I walked into a bar to meet up with “Capital C” and watch her team play their first APA match. They were short a player and, out of the blue, her team captain asked if I knew how to shoot… Next thing I knew, I was playing the first tournament league game of my life, and winning it to boot.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think that a few months later I’d be skipping the playoffs and moving directly to the citywide APA tournament with a good chance at making it to the APA Nationals in Las Vegas.

What a whirlwind couple of months. I’d always enjoyed shooting pool, but I’ve never taken much time to get into the game at a competitive level. I was a slightly-above-average bar room player. It’s really difficult to grasp that I’m on a team of 5 active players that managed to work together and take the #1 spot.

Ok, so I made the plunge — Geocaching has now become my guilty pleasure and in order to do it properly, I’ve purchased a proper GPS — The Garmin 60CSx.

Although totally unnecessary — “Capital C” has two Garmin eTrex units — I just couldn’t go another day without the promise of faster satellite locks and better reception. I am, afterall, a fuckin’ gadget geek.

A full review of the unit will follow as soon as it gets here and I get to run it through it’s paces.

Should I really be this excited?

Oh, BTW — after much research, Amazon.com wins for best price. Under $350 with free shipping.