Everything You Need to Know About Narcissism and Therapy

Narcissism is a serious problem that can destroy an individual’s personal and professional relationships. Because of this, it would be wise to explore all the options that address this issue. If this is something that you want to learn more about, then we’ve got just the thing for you. Here’s a brief breakdown of everything that you need to know about narcissism and therapy

What Is Narcissism?

People with narcissistic personality disorder have an inflated sense of their own importance and a deep need for excessive attention and admiration. They are often troubled in their relationships and have a hard time identifying the emotions of others. The disorder affects many parts of life, including relationships, work, school or financial affairs. 

People with narcissistic personality disorder believe they are better than other people and have little regard for others’ feelings. This can lead to them being generally unhappy and disappointed when they are not given any special favours or admiration.

Now, it’s important to correctly identify narcissistic personality disorder. Here are the most common symptoms:

• An overblown sense of self-importance.
• Extreme entitlement.
• Requires constant admiration from everyone around them.
• Expects to be recognized as superior to everyone even if it is unwarranted.
• Lies and exaggerates achievements and skills.
• Fixates on fantasies about success, power, brilliance, or beauty.
• Believes that they are superior for no reason.
• Monopolize conversations and talks down to everyone.

Can Therapy Help with Narcissism?

It’s difficult to diagnose and treat narcissism. People with this condition generally have traits on a continuum ranging from non-existent to full-blown. Each narcissist has his or her own unique symptoms, and each narcissism treatment approach is tailored to each individual case. With that being said, therapy can be quite useful when it comes to remedying narcissistic personality disorder. In most cases, psychotherapy is used to treat people with narcissistic personality disorder.

How Does Therapy Help with Narcissism?

Individuals with narcissistic personality disorder are difficult to counsel. Because of the nature of the disorder, they are likely to either refuse to come to therapy or to drop out of therapy early on, believing that there is nothing wrong with them that needs changing. However, therapy can be extremely helpful when done correctly.

Therapy is not a quick process; most often it takes weeks or even months to complete the therapy. In this process, a person is encouraged by a counsellor to explore and express his true self. To embrace change, one must become aware of areas that need to be changed, and this could take some time to reach the point of therapy.

Counselling is a solution for narcissists who want to change. After all, narcissists are people, too, and people can change for the better. However, narcissists need to acknowledge that they need a helping hand if they’re going to be helped.

Conclusion

We hope this article proves to be useful when it comes to helping you best understand narcissism and therapy. While it may be difficult, narcissism and everything that comes with it can be addressed through therapy. For more specific questions about this subject, we suggest that you reach out to a professional. 

Are you looking for counselling services in Cambridge, Ontario? Look no further than our experts at Chettiar Counselling and Associates. Our therapists provide support for managing anxiety, depression, anger management, amongst other things. Call us today and let us help you get through your current struggles.