narcissism

narcissism /nar·cis·sism/ (nahr´sĭ-sizm) dominant interest in one's self; the state in which the ego is invested in oneself rather than in another person; self-love.narcissis´tic

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nar·cis·sism (närs-szm) or nar·cism (närszm)

n.

1. Excessive love or admiration of oneself.

2. A psychological condition characterized by self-preoccupation, lack of empathy, and unconscious deficits in self-esteem.

3. Erotic pleasure derived from contemplation or admiration of one's own body or self, especially as a fixation on or a regression to an infantile stage of development.

4. The attribute of the human psyche characterized by admiration of oneself but within normal limits.

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narcis·sist n.

narcis·sistic adj.

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narcissism

[när′sisiz′əm]

Etymology: Gk, Narcissus, mythic youth in love with himself

1 an abnormal interest in oneself, especially in one's own body and sexual characteristics; self-love.

2 (in psychoanalysis) sexual self-interest that is a normal characteristic of the phallic stage of psychosexual development, occurring as the infantile ego acquires a libido. Narcissism in the adult is abnormal, representing fixation at this stage of development or regression to it. Compare egotism. See also narcissistic personality, narcissistic personality disorder.

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narcissism [nahr´sĭ-sizm]

dominant interest in oneself; self-love. adj., adj narcissis´tic.

primary narcissism that occurring in the early infantile phase of object relationship development, when the child has not differentiated himself from the outside world and regards all sources of pleasure as originating within himself.

secondary narcissism that in which the libido, once attached to external love objects, is redirected back to the self.

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narcissism (närˑ·s·sizˈ·m),

n excessive admiration of self, par-ticularly of the body and sexual characteristics.

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narcissism (när´ssizm),

n a personality disorder in which a person is so self-absorbed that the needs and feelings of others do not matter.

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Patient discussion about narcissism.

Q. Is narcissism misdiagnosed as bipolar disorder or autism? Is narcissism misdiagnosed as bipolar disorder or autism? It would seem to me that Bipolar and some forms of Autism are equally likely to be misdiagnosed as NPD.

A. Hi friend, Psychiatry is, in many ways, an inexact science, and diagnosis can often be pretty subjective, relating as much to the specialization and intellectual preferences. For instance a neuro-chemical specialist is unlikely to diagnose any personality disorder as the very concept argues with his core philosophy...likewise a behaviorist is extremely unlikely to be comfortable diagnosing autism or neuro-chemical bipolar. This is why it is SO important not to generalize too much about any mental disorder, because there will always be a varied spectrum of individuals presenting with entirely different symptoms hung with the same label... some of whom would never have been hung with that label AT ALL by many other practitioners.