The 2nd Nastiest Tactic in the Narcissist Playbook
It’s (definitely) not you — it’s them.
I don’t meet many Narcissists.
They don’t usually sign up for therapy. That’s because they already know how they want to play life — and people. They say they don’t have “issues”, they don’t need “fixing”.
But they’ll often insist their partner “sees someone”. When this happens they will attend a session — usually just one — so they can explain properly what’s going on. Because (they believe) they can do it better than their partner. Which is an interesting take on relationships. And an even more interesting reflection on themselves.
In clinical terms, Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) is a mental health condition, characterised by an extreme self-focus coupled with the inability to consider, and relate to, the thoughts and feelings of others. It’s estimated 1% of the population meet the official criteria but up to 5% have clusters of these traits.
NPD, like any personality disorder, is not black and white so there are risks in rushing to a diagnosis. And it’s not ethical for a psychologist to diagnose someone “second hand”, without having assessed them. But when someone is struggling in a relationship, it’s helpful to consider the NPD cluster of traits because it can throw light on…
