What Happens When The Narcissist Sees You Happy

When a narcissist sees you happy he or she feels worse, especially if that happiness is related to something he or she cannot control. You may feel like you are losing the spotlight or that he is not capable of generating that same happiness in his life. This disparity between the happiness of others and your own sense of emptiness or dissatisfaction can intensify your feelings of inferiority.

Additionally, the narcissist may see other people’s happiness as a threat to their control and power over others. If he perceives that someone is receiving recognition for her happiness, you feel challenged in your position and looks for ways to restore his superiority complex. For all these reasons, when a narcissist sees you happy he feels worse and may express feelings such as envy and resentment.

If the narcissist sees you happy, he can react in different ways, depending on what your relationship is like and his personality. Here’s what happens when the narcissist sees you happy:

• Envy and jealousy : He may feel envious when he sees you happy, especially if he feels that this happiness makes him feel less important or undervalued. The narcissist perceives your happiness as a threat to his own sense of superiority.
• Contempt : They may feel hurt by their lack of self-esteem, and their reaction may be to make hurtful and negative comments about your actions. He may show contempt through ridicule, hostile attitudes, and sarcastic expressions, or by trying to minimize your achievements or joy.
• Rage : In extreme situations, a narcissist experiences rage when he or she feels overshadowed and ignored by the happiness of others. In these cases, we recommend reading this article on How to manage anger.
• Frustration : If the narcissist feels that he cannot control your happiness, or if he perceives that it diminishes his importance or power, he will experience frustration. He will manifest this emotional response with manipulative behaviors or try to invalidate your feelings of happiness.
• Unsafety : Other people’s happiness, whether yours or someone else’s, can trigger feelings of insecurity in the narcissist. He or she will wonder why you are happy while he or she is not. This leads you to question your own worth and self-esteem.

Related to this, in this article you will find information about What happens when a narcissist doesn’t get what he wants.

When a narcissist sees you happy, can react in a complex way , often driven by their own insecurities and selfish needs. He or she tends to see the world through an egocentric lens, where the only priority is him or herself. If the happiness of others seems to challenge this perception, a narcissist may feel uncomfortable and threatened and do the following:

• He appears competitive : When the narcissist sees you happy, he will feel challenged by that happiness. This could lead him to compete for attention and recognition, so he will seek to upstage you with his own achievements or behaviors.
• Manipulates others : Some narcissists try to take advantage of other people’s happiness for their own purposes. In these cases, they try to take advantage of your good will or positive energy to satisfy their own needs. In this situation, we tell you how a manipulator acts when he is discovered.
• Seek to be the center of attention n: to regain confidence and control of the situation, you will seek to be the center of attention again, subtly without anyone noticing or blatantly. You may try to change the topic of conversation or interrupt directly to talk about the negative things happening in your life.

This article is merely informative, at PsychologyFor we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to What happens when the narcissist sees you happy we recommend that you enter our Clinical Psychology category.