I might have Narcissistic PD, still treatable?

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I began to realize I show most to all of the traits listed and I am hurting others around myself. Something very deep in my neurology is broken beyond repair, but I'd like to change it so I and my family don't have to suffer as much. I've caused so much damage sometimes I feel I don't even deserve to be around others, like I should isolate myself as punishment and let that take the biological toll.

Later edit: on second thought, I have the overt appearance of an NPD individual but on the inside I feel love and attachment but I can't express it. It's killing me.

It seems pretty rare for a narcissist to recognise themselves as such... more likely you're struggling with an autistic difficulty with empathy (feeling empathy inside but unable to act on it appropriately).
You're not alone, just do your best and don't beat yourself up about getting it wrong sometimes.

Most likely, a narcissist wouldn't ever admit causing damage. Everyone is guilty but them.

I suspect you struggle with relating to others and communicating feelings with them. An autistic thing, really.

A counselor told me that the protocol for personality disorders is, counseling



That could be correct

Or maybe that's because she's trying to earn money

Counseling is the way; I've been diagnosed with THREE personality disorders and after 28 years in counseling they're all in remission. Medication doesn't do anything to change a personality!

The good thing about personality disorders (if indeed you have NPD) is that they are treatable, albeit with a lot of time and effort. But you will need a therapist with expertise in both personality disorders and adult autism. That will be hard to find. Hopefully in Austin it will be possible to find.

Later edit: Sometimes autistic behaviors can be mistaken for narcissistic behaviors. For example, I am better at leading a group than I am at participating in groups led by others. The reason I'm better at leading a group is because, as the leader, I am able to impose the kind of structure I need in order to be able to process what is going on. But an NT might jump to the conclusion that my preference for leading a group is all about my ego.

Last edited by Mona Pereth on 07 Jul 2019, 3:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Rare but not unheard of. Treatments for NPD do exist, so obviously some people with NPD do come to recognize it and do seek treatment.


It is possible for an autistic person to have a co-occurring personality disorder. It is also possible for an autistic person to be misdiagnosed as having a personality disorder.

We don't personally know wrongcitizen, so we have no way to know. Let's just hope he finds a good-enough therapist who can help him sort it out.

I relate to that wrongcitizen. In the past my mom has even said I was selfish, manipulative, hateful, & has accused me of only caring about myself & expecting others to cater to my every whim. I'm really not narcissistic or antisocial or anything thou. The real problem is that I have autism & some other mental issues some of which could be related to my autism & I also have physical issues. Noone really understood all that & I couldn't get the rite help, assistance, & support I needed. I felt very bad about it on the inside which made me depressed which of corse made things even worse. NTs like to accuse those of us on the spectrum of lacking empathy but lots NTs don't have empathy for us. I really wish people would stop projecting their own issues onto others.

I've been diagnosed with a couple seemingly contradictory personality disorders flawedpin. Some experts believed I had Schizoid Personality Disorder instead of anything on the autism spectrum & they also believed I had Borderline Personality Disorder. Some of my BPD symptoms were due to my 1st relationship falling apart. She was the 1st person I ever really connected with & felt close to. I have anxiety & OCD & those issues ranamuk in the relationship which caused me to screw things up. I spent the next 5 years on psych meds for a bad psychotic depression. I tried counseling for alittle bit but felt like I didn't really get anything out of it & my health insurance didn't cover mental so I quit. I think the the meds helped hold me together while I worked on myself in other ways. I got employed for a bit. I researched a lot of stuff. I posted a lot about stuff to help analyze/sort things out, find others I could relate to, get sympathy, & get some advice I might could actually use/apply. I also joined a support group for a little while that was for depression, anxiety, & bipolar. I seldom talked but it was nice to be out of the house for a bit & to listen to others I could somewhat relate to. I eventually weaned myself off the meds cuz I thought they were making certain things worse for my physical health & I felt I didn't need em anymore. I got into my 2nd relationship a couple years later & my anxiety & OCD contributed to problems in that relationship too thou there were lots of other issues unrelated to my mental state & she would of broken up with me even if my anxiety & OCD weren't a problem. 1ce the relationship ended I realized that my anxiety & OCD were problems within both relationships & that I was having a hard time getting over/dealing with things cuz of the anxiety & OCD. I researched treatments for them including various meds. I decided to try specific meds that I never tired before & got my GP to prescribe them. The meds help a lot. I got in my current relationship shortly after & I'm a lot more stable in this relationship partly cuz of the meds, partly cuz I worked on myself & tried to learn from my previous two relationships, & it also helps that Cass is a better match for me in some ways like she's kinda needy & clingy too. I improved a lot in some ways since I had the mental breakdown & I seriously doubt any good psych would give me the SPD or BPD diagnoses now.
I do think counseling can help some people a lot but I also think it might not be rite for everyone & I believe people should work on themselves in other ways too. I know meds can potentially be majorly beneficial for some people as well but I think it's important to do some of your own research on meds & that you have some understanding of yourself & issues instead of just letting the psychs & docs guess.