FAQ

When you mention narcissists, what do you mean by that? Are you referring to those with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)?

Not necessarily. When we refer to “narcissists” here, we’re using an umbrella term. A “narcissist” can indeed have NPD, but under that umbrella we’re also referring to those with other cluster B personality disorders such as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)  or Antisocial Personality Disorder (AsPD), or significant traits of any of those disorders. This is for the sake of brevity.

But wait, aren’t all those disorders distinct?

Yes, and no. Take BPD and NPD for example, they’re said to have different motivations (fear of loss of connection vs self-esteem enhancement), but the behaviours are very similar. Even professionals can have a hard time telling the difference between any two cluster B personality disorders.  And to a romantic partner caught up in the web of a relationship with someone of one of these personality styles, the impact can feel exactly the same.

We’re not diagnosticians here. Our goal is only to provide information that people in these relationships may find useful to understanding and to disentangle themselves.

What about stigma, though? Surely not every narcissist is the same.

Indeed they are not. Here we try to make that clear that narcissism is a complex personality trait, and that not every person with narcissism will display all the behaviours mentioned on this site.

Can narcissists change?

We’re not therapists or diagnosticians here, but it’s our understanding that it’s hard to treat someone who doesn’t recognize they have a problem in the first place. Check out the following information: Can a narcissist change?