Narcissism denotes an individual psychological and cultural condition. The degree to which a person identifies with her feelings is the degree of narcissism he has.
In this article We will see what are the two faces of narcissism and how they are reflected in the person’s way of behaving.
Pathological narcissism is the result of a failure in the development of the ego. People with a very high degree of narcissism may have had traumatic experiences in childhood, or overwhelming experiences that could not be integrated into the Self.
So, Pathological narcissism is characterized by the following aspects:
The behaviors we have seen cause these people to isolate themselves over time. and as a consequence they experience life as something empty and meaningless.
At the cultural level, the following phenomena are detected:
All this results in a insensitivity to human needs.
The roots of narcissism
Heinz Kohut was a psychoanalyst who delved into pathological narcissism, and explains that occurs at the time of the mother-affected child interaction.
It can occur due to the mother’s rejection and/or abuse or her death, when the infant does not find a substitute person. In these cases, the boy or girl feels a deep emptiness or abandonment that usually causes what he called “narcissistic rage”, which at first is towards the mother but later can turn towards oneself and finally towards others.
Narcissistic depression is very difficult to deal with because these people tend to isolate themselves and, for example, now in the pandemic these cases have increased. Continuing along the lines of the social and health crisis that we are going through, narcissism has been exacerbated, and those who suffer from these complications feel great difficulty in complying with restrictions and preventive and health measures. They resist using face masks or gel, and maintaining a safe distance because they feel and think that they are not susceptible to the virus.
Otto Kernberg comments that narcissistic people have grandiose fantasies about their worth, feelings of inferiority and excessive dependence on external admiration and applause. There is great dissatisfaction with themselves and a tendency to cruelty towards others.
Living with narcissistic people is difficult because they lack empathy; Far from listening to others, they talk about themselves all the time. Another trait to highlight is that these people are characterized by being very aggressive when they are contradicted or do not do what they want. An example: when they live as a couple, they do not appreciate or respect the other person, but rather they denigrate and despise them.
The other side of narcissism
On the other hand we have healthy narcissismwhich is a natural component in human beings.
Narcissism, if moderate, can provoke many positive issues in the person. This healthy narcissism is found in people who:
They have adequate self-esteem.
They manage to have realistic expectations.
They have a greater tolerance for frustration.
They may feel the need to seek perfection and use that motivation to progress.
The important thing about having healthy narcissism is that helps people not need the approval of others to live and enjoy life, because the main approval these people need is their own. Healthy narcissism is respectful of the ideas and actions of others.
Taking the previous example, the healthy narcissist in times of pandemic, being able to find himself in a situation of real risk, accepted confinement and sought to protect himself by going out with security measures and even implementing new measures, and in the best of cases he reinvented himself in various aspects of his life.
