What happens when a narcissist has to face reality?

The narcissistic bubble can creep over you in an almost imperceptible manner. You’re not even fully conscious of having created it. The more reinforcing experiences you have, the larger and more rigid it becomes. Then, without warning, something happens that causes the bubble to burst.

Do narcissists deny reality?

Narcissistic people engage in routine forms of denial to distort reality. Some forms of denial are dismissal, justification, minimization, negation, and reversal.

What happens when a narcissist is backed into a corner?

This leads them to cast others as the villains making it impossible for them to recognize that their failures are being caused by their own behavior. Additionally, when narcissists are backed into a corner and feel threatened they many times lash out violently against society and their own personal social network.

Do narcissists create their own reality?

Narcissists and psychopaths dissociate (erase memories) a lot (are amnesiac) because their contact with the world and with others is via a fictitious construct: The false self. Narcissists never experience reality directly but through a distorting lens darkly.

Does a narcissist know what they are doing?

Whether or not narcissists know what they’re doing is a common question. The answer is “yes” and “not really.” Narcissists are always seeking attention and validation called “narcissistic supply” to prop up their low self-worth. All their interactions are about getting supply in the moment or down the line.

What happens when narcissists come to grips with their weaknesses?

Goldstein described what happens somewhere in the middle years when narcissists come to grips with their own failings, exposing their weaknesses to themselves. They can become both enraged and ashamed.

What causes the narcissistic bubble to retreat?

The factors that cause the narcissistic bubble to retreat and burst were addressed in an astute article by Eda Goldstein in 1995. Goldstein described what happens somewhere in the middle years when narcissists come to grips with their own failings, exposing their weaknesses to themselves. They can become both enraged and ashamed.

How does aging affect narcissistic personality disorder?

You’re no longer the center of their world. Aging itself can bring about a withering, if not bursting, of the narcissistic bubble. You’re no longer a fresh young thing and are starting to develop wrinkles, bags, sags, or a gray or bald head.