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Narcissism, Substance Abuse, and Reckless Behaviours
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By Sam Vaknin
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Pathological narcissism is an addiction to Narcissistic Supply,the narcissist's drug of choice. It is, therefore, notsurprising that other addictive and reckless behaviours 每workaholism, alcoholism, drug abuse, pathological gambling,compulsory shopping, or reckless driving 每 piggyback on thisprimary dependence.
The narcissist 每 like other types of addicts 每 derives pleasurefrom these exploits. But they also sustain and enhance hisgrandiose fantasies as "unique", "superior", "entitled", and"chosen". They place him above the laws and pressures of themundane and away from the humiliating and sobering demands ofreality. They render him the centre of attention 每 but alsoplace him in "splendid isolation" from the madding and inferiorcrowd.
Such compulsory and wild pursuits provide a psychologicalexoskeleton. They are a substitute to quotidian existence. Theyafford the narcissist with an agenda, with timetables, goals,and faux achievements. The narcissist 每 the adrenaline junkie 每feels that he is in control, alert, excited, and vital. He doesnot regard his condition as dependence. The narcissist firmlybelieves that he is in charge of his addiction, that he can quitat will and on short notice.
The narcissist denies his cravings for fear of "losing face" andsubverting the flawless, perfect, immaculate, and omnipotentimage he projects. When caught red handed, the narcissistunderestimates, rationalises, or intellectualises his addictiveand reckless behaviours 每 converting them into an integral partof his grandiose and fantastic False Self.
Thus, a drug abusing narcissist may claim to be conducting firsthand research for the benefit of humanity 每 or that hissubstance abuse results in enhanced creativity and productivity.The dependence of some narcissists becomes a way of life: busycorporate executives, race car drivers, or professional gamblerscome to mind.
The narcissist's addictive behaviours take his mind off hisinherent limitations, inevitable failures, painful andmuch-feared rejections, and the Grandiosity Gap 每 the abyssbetween the image he projects (the False Self) and the injurioustruth. They relieve his anxiety and resolve the tension betweenhis unrealistic expectations and inflated self-image 每 and hisincommensurate achievements, position, status, recognition,intelligence, wealth, and physique.
Thus, there is no point in treating the dependence andrecklessness of the narcissist without first treating theunderlying personality disorder. The narcissist's addictionsserve deeply ingrained emotional needs. They intermeshseamlessly with the pathological structure of his disorganisedpersonality, with his character faults, and primitive defencemechanisms.
Techniques such as "12 steps" may prove more efficacious intreating the narcissist's grandiosity, rigidity, sense ofentitlement, exploitativeness, and lack of empathy. This isbecause 每 as opposed to traditional treatment modalities 每 theemphasis is on tackling the narcissist's psychological makeup,rather than on behaviour modification.
The narcissist's overwhelming need to feel omnipotent andsuperior can be co-opted in the therapeutic process. Overcomingan addictive behaviour can be 每 truthfully 每 presented by thetherapist as a rare and impressive feat, worthy of thenarcissist's unique mettle.
Narcissists fall for these transparent pitches surprisinglyoften. But this approach can backfire. Should the narcissistrelapse 每 an almost certain occurrence 每 he will feel ashamed toadmit his fallibility, need for emotional sustenance, andimpotence. He is likely to avoid treatment altogether andconvince himself that now, having succeeded once to get rid ofhis addiction, he is self-sufficient and omniscient.
First published in my "Narcissistic Personality Disorder" TopicPage on Suite 101
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