Is this “normal bratty” behavior or a sign of a mental health condition?
Is this “normal bratty” behavior or a sign of a mental health condition?
Someone I know shows stuff such as:
- constantly needing a scapegoat
- shifting blame/cannot take accountability
- exaggerated mindset, often where other people are useless and they are the greatest
- has to maintain a very positive public image, such as being the absolute best
- does not have empathy unless it involves them or impacts their image in some way, if their image is supposed to be empathetic they will act so because of their image
- lacks empathy for people in pain/bad mental health/etc. but their image might be very upset about that
- will often be very nice to people in any sort of power
I’m asking because I’m genuinely curious if I should help, and maybe that even if they exhibit negative behaviors, they’re not a completely TERRIBLE person despite how they treat me.
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You are literally describing narcissism. If they are incredibly important to you then you can hope they decide to pursue cognitive behavioral therapy but IRL you cannot make them fix this. Behavioral disorders are very hard to confront especially NPD because the person with it rarely sees the issue.
so this is just like textbook narcissism and not just an asshole?
Having a diagnosis doesn't excuse their actions. At best it explains them.
That's not narcissism, don't take diagnoses from people in comment sections.
This is a severe self-esteem issue that manifests itself as inflated ego.
Im not a shrink but it seems like it. Like I said if it isn't someone you are close to and have to have in your life I would move on.
If this is your actual problem rather than someone else then you need to talk with a therapist specializing in cognitive behavioral therapy. That road is long and difficult but you might end up happier after a few years.
she’s actually my “close friend” but I don’t consider her that for obvious reasons
Move on, people on the NPD spectrum don't understand theor problem and you cannot do that for them.
yeah, she either apologizes because she “can’t control herself” or blames me
The Narcissist's Prayer
That didn't happen. And if it did, it wasn't that bad. And if it was, that's not a big deal. And if it is, that's not my fault. And if it was, I didn't mean it. And if I did, you deserved it.
YES. This is how she behaves!!
Note if they are a teenager they might grow out of this. If you are 30 run for the fucking hills
i can be hopeful then, im a teen
They could outgrow it but if this is consistent at 19-20 it us unlikely to change but 13-18 yeah it might.
No one can diagnose someone on the internet but the things you list do seem to paint a rough sketch of a narcissist. Thing is, people can have narcissistic traits and still not meet the criteria for narcissistic personality disorder.
But it doesn’t really matter. The person you describe sounds like someone to be avoided, regardless of whether or not they qualify for NPD.
nothing they do is ever their fault, and what I do is never good enough for them
yeah, makes sense.