Narcissistic collapse occurs when a narcissist's ability to uphold their grandiose, confident image is threatened. As a result, they often become enraged, resulting in impulsivity, intense lashing out, or harm to others.
In general, it may involve intense emotional reactions and a tendency toward vindictive behaviors, but it could also lead to depression and withdrawal. Narcissistic collapse isn't a permanent occurrence once it happens. Typically, the emotional pain will decrease and the person may return to feeling their usual.
The Narcissistically Injured/Deflated Narcissist:
The narcissistically injured, hereafter referred to as the deflated narcissist, is someone who embraces shame but, this narcissism comes from the rigidity with which the individual tells the story.
Narcissistic collapse happens when a person with narcissistic personality disorder experiences a failure, humiliation, or other blow to their secretly fragile self-esteem. Depending on the type of narcissist, collapse may look different and happen more frequently.
While most narcissistic collapses tend to be a temporary thing, there are some that can last for years — even to the end of one's life.
When they feel hurt, a narcissist's rage may boil over, causing them to lose control and become furious for the slightest reason. For example, if you ignore your narcissistic partner, limit your interaction with them, or avoid unnecessary communication, they may react with an explosive rage, leading to a collapse.
Yes, recovery is possible for narcissists experiencing a collapse. However, the process can be challenging and requires commitment and effort to change deeply ingrained behaviors and thought patterns.
Older narcissists become increasingly closed-minded.
They have an inner urgency to blame somewhere for the loss of their personal power or their inability to get the attention they feel they deserve. Narcissists tend to dump all their animosity on scapegoats.
Drinking alcohol lowers inhibitions and can increase other narcissist behaviors including self-absorption, denial, illusions of grandeur, and destructiveness. These behaviors can lead to poor choices, including drinking and driving or excessive consumption, which can be fatal.
Narcissistic silent treatment is when a narcissist ignores and avoids interacting with you to punish, control, or communicate that they are unhappy with you. It's a form of manipulation, and this toxic behavior can negatively impact the victim psychologically and emotionally.
Weaknesses of a narcissist: the fear of being alone
As well as being one of the greatest weaknesses of a narcissist, loneliness is also their greatest fear. That's because, in order to be someone, a narcissist needs victims. They're like predators looking for prey to feed on.
A narcissistic person often continually invalidates other's feelings. Eventually the person doubts most of what he or she feels and thinks. A narcissist distorts a person's empathy and introspectiveness, making him or her think they are character flaws instead of gifts.
Most recent theories have focused on the link between narcissism and negative childhood experiences, such as physical or sexual violence, neglect, or rejection [10,11].
Avoid playing their games, and just ignore them when they try to manipulate you so they don't have control anymore. Don't argue with a narcissist because they might just keep escalating things until they get their way. Someone with NPD is incapable of seeing things from your point of view. Just ignore them.
Due to their reward and novelty-seeking behaviors, Dr. Ramani adds that narcissists not only get bored easily with new things, but also new people.
According to Thomaes & Brummelman, the development of narcissism begins at around the ages of 7 or 8.
3% of subjects showed increased narcissistic traits between the ages of 18 and 41. The belief that one is smarter, better looking, more successful and more deserving than others — a personality trait known as narcissism — tends to wane as a person matures, a new study confirms.
They physically abuse pets.
If a narcissist's dog has urinated on the carpet while the narcissist was out, the narcissist sees it as a personal affront—even though the narcissist left the dog alone for 12 hours. The narcissist then hits the dog and calls it names. The dog learns to fear the narcissist.
According to Julie L. Hall, author of “The Narcissist in Your Life: Recognizing the Patterns and Learning to Break Free,” narcissists become more extreme versions of their worst selves as they age, which includes becoming more desperate, deluded, paranoid, angry, abusive, and isolated.
The narcissist often engages in self-defeating and self-destructive behaviours.