Background

Schizoid and Paranoid Narcissist

Uploaded 1/25/2011, approx. 3 minute read

My name is Sam Vaknin. I am the author of Malignant Self-Love, Narcissism Revisited.

Narcissistic personality disorder is often diagnosed with other mental health disorders, other personality disorders such as borderline, histrionic or antisocial.

This phenomenon of multiple diagnosis in the same patient is called co-morbidity. It is also often accompanied by substance abuse and other reckless and impulsive behaviors, and this is called dual diagnosis.

Narcissists are often paranoid. Some of them are schizoid. They avoid contact with other people.

The basic dynamic of this particular brand of co-morbidity goes like this.

The narcissist feels superior, unique, entitled, and better than his fellow men. He, thus, tends to despise other people, to hold them in contempt and to regard them as lowly and subservient beings.

The narcissist feels that his time is invaluable. His mission is of cosmic importance. His contributions to humanity are priceless. He, therefore, demands total obedience and catering to his ever-changing needs. Any demands on his time and resources is deemed to be both humiliating and wasteful.

But the narcissist is dependent on input from other people for the performance of certain ego functions, such as the regulation of his sense of self-worth. Without narcissistic supply, without adulation, adoration, or attention from other people, the narcissist prevails, crumbles, and withers, and becomes dysphoric, or in other words, depressed.

So on the one hand, he despises other people and holds them in contempt and regards them as inferior, but on the other hand, he is completely and utterly dependent on them.

The narcissist resents this dependence. He is furious at himself for his own neediness and clinging.

And in a typical narcissistic maneuver, which is called alloplastic defense, the narcissist blames other people for his own anger and fury. He displaces his rage and its ruse.

Many narcissists are paranoid. This means that they are afraid of people and of what people might do to him. Wouldn't you be scared and paranoid if you're very life dependent continually on the goodwill of others?

The narcissist's very life depends on others providing him with narcissistic supply. He becomes suicidal if they stop doing it.

In the absence of narcissistic supply, the narcissist dies, either mentally or physically.

So this dependence on others creates paranoia. Will they cease? Will they stop supplying him with the narcissistic supply? Will they doom? Will they judge him? Will they condemn him to death?

To counter this overwhelming feeling of helplessness, dependence on narcissistic supply, the narcissist becomes a control freak. He sadistically manipulates others to satisfy his own needs. He derives pleasure from the utter subjugation of his human environment, pleasure and relief from anxiety.

Finally, the narcissist is a latent masochist. He seeks punishment, castigation and excommunication. This self-destruction is the only way to validate powerful voices that he had internalized as a child.

His parents told him, your bad, rotten, hopeless, you are an evil child. And so these voices inside him still go on and they go on in the form of what we call a sadistic superego.

He wants to satisfy the superego. And so he punishes himself, self-destructs and self defeats.

The narcissistic landscape is therefore fraught with contradictions.

The narcissist depends on people, but hates them and despises them. He wants to control people unconditionally, but he's also looking to punish himself savagely. He is terrified of persecution in his persecutory anxiety, but he seeks the company of his own persecutors, compulsively.

The narcissist is the victim of incompatible inner dynamics ruled by numerous vicious circles, pushed and pulled simultaneously by irresistible forces and urges.

A minority of narcissists choose the schizoid solution. They choose, in effect, to disengage, both emotionally and socially. They become recklessness and hermits. They are no more in the social sense and even in the psychological sense.

If you enjoyed this article, you might like the following:

Lonely, Schizoid Narcissist

Narcissistic personality disorder is often diagnosed with other mental health disorders, such as borderline, histrionic or antisocial psychopathic personality disorder. Narcissism is often also accompanied by substance abuse and other reckless and impulsive behaviors, and this we call dual diagnosis. There is one curious match, one logic-defying appearance or co-appearance of mental health disorders, narcissism, together with schizoid personality disorder. A minority of narcissists, therefore, choose the schizoid solution. They choose to disengage, to detach both emotionally and socially.


Narcissist: Is He or Isn't He?

Narcissism is a spectrum of behaviors, from healthy to pathological, and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual specifies nine diagnostic criteria for narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). A malignant narcissist is someone who has NPD and wreaks havoc on themselves and their surroundings. They feel grandiose and self-important, exaggerate accomplishments, and demand recognition as superior without commensurate achievements. They require excessive admiration, adulation, attention, and affirmation, and are interpersonally exploitative, devoid of empathy, and constantly envious of others.


Signs You are Victim of Narcissistic Abuse, Not Common Abuse (Stress, Depression Management Webinar)

Narcissistic abuse is a subtype of abusive behavior that is pervasive, sophisticated, and can be practiced either covertly or overtly. Victims of narcissistic abuse often experience depression, anxiety, disorientation, and dissociative symptoms. This type of abuse can lead to complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) and even elements of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The way individuals process and react to trauma can lead to either regression into infantile behaviors or personal growth and maturation, depending on their emotional regulation and maturity.


Asperger's Disorder Misdiagnosed as Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)

Asperger's Disorder can be diagnosed in toddlers as young as three years old, while Narcissistic Personality Disorder cannot be safely diagnosed until late adolescence. However, Asperger's Disorder is often misdiagnosed as Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Both types of patients are self-centered and engrossed in a narrow range of interests and activities, with severely hampered social and occupational interactions. The gulf between Asperger's and pathological narcissism is vast, with the narcissist switching between social agility and social impairment voluntarily, while the Asperger's patient's social awkwardness is an inevitability.


Can You Diagnose Your Narcissist?

Narcissistic personality disorder is a disease that can only be diagnosed by a qualified mental health diagnostician. People often compile lists of traits and behaviors that they believe constitute the essence of narcissism, but these are often misleading. Only five of the exhaustive list of criteria need to coexist in a patient for them to be diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder. It is not proper for laymen to diagnose people, even if narcissists rarely attend therapy or subject themselves to diagnostic tests.


The “Lone Wolf” Narcissist and His Prey

Narcissists require constant validation and attention, and their sense of entitlement clashes with their dependence on others for self-worth. Lone wolf narcissists who withdraw from society can become dangerous due to their unquenched hunger for narcissistic supply. Schizoids, on the other hand, are indifferent to social relationships and have a limited range of emotions and affect. Psychopaths lack empathy and disregard others as instruments of gratification, and they are often criminals. When narcissism, schizoid disorder, and psychopathy converge, it can result in extremely dangerous individuals.


Your Narcissist: Madman or Genius? (Based on News Intervention Interview)

Narcissists often claim to be geniuses, but Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a serious mental health problem. It is difficult to tell the difference between a genius and a madman, but the scientific method can help by applying a test of falsifiability. Narcissists often make predictions that fail time and again, while geniuses' predictions hold water for long stretches of time. Narcissism is a problem of nurture, a problem of the environment, and abuse and trauma suffered in early childhood.


Here's Why We're All Doomed (Excerpt)

In a world that is mentally ill, the construct of individual mental illness is dead. Mental illness of the individual is positively reinforced in a deranged world. The environment no longer provides cues on how to be healthy, and there is no unscripted exposure therapy. Narcissism and psychopathy are thriving, and dark triad personalities are at the top. The sick rise to the top when the world is sick, and there is nothing we can do about this.


Women Narcissists

Male and female narcissists differ in the way they manifest their narcissism, with women focusing on their body and traditional gender roles. However, both genders are chauvinistic and conservative, as they depend on the opinions of those around them to maintain their false self. Women are more likely to seek therapy and use their children as a source of narcissistic supply, while men may view their children as a nuisance. Ultimately, there is no psychodynamic difference between male and female narcissists, as they both choose different sources of supply but are otherwise identical.


Schizoid Narcissist Is Not Covert Narcissist

The text discusses the atypical presentations of narcissism, particularly focusing on the subtype known as the schizoid narcissist. It delves into the characteristics, behaviors, and comorbidities of this type, as well as the differences between schizoid and covert narcissists. The lecture also explores the emotional reactivity and sexuality of schizoid narcissists, as well as the various subtypes within this category. Additionally, it touches on the inner world of schizoids and their coping strategies when faced with a depletion of narcissistic supply. The text concludes by mentioning the upcoming lectures on the solutions adopted by narcissists and the psychological theories connecting schizoid personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder, and schizophrenia.

Transcripts Copyright © Sam Vaknin 2010-2024, under license to William DeGraaf
Website Copyright © William DeGraaf 2022-2024
Get it on Google Play
Privacy policy