You’ve probably heard of a narcissistic person or a sociopath, but what happens when the two of these issues combine into one person? Meet the narcopath. It’s a relatively new psychological term that combines the dangerous mix of two mental health disorders that brings both violent and sadistic traits together.
Understanding the Narcopath
Though the term isn’t included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, it is a term some people use to describe narcissistic sociopaths. When both an antisocial personality crashes with a narcissistic one, the combination can be volatile. However, those that fall into the narcopath category meet the criteria for Cluster B personality disorders within the DSM-5, which is the American Board of Psychology diagnostic manual.
In a Cluster B disorder, the individual has a form of narcissism that is malignant. Additionally, they have traits such as paranoia, sociopathic tendencies, as well as a sadistic personality. Anyone who has this disorder can destroy other folks, families, and even the entire workplace where they’re employed.
Since this person only cares about themselves, they lack the empathy that most people have towards others. They feel a sense of entitlement and a grandiose view of themselves. When it comes to relationships with others, they dehumanize them, and they can quickly become hostile.
Signs of a Narcopath
Due to the psychologically unaware nature of these individuals, they can become quite abusive. They will manipulate, lie, and cheat to get their way. Other symptoms that come along with this mental health disturbance include the following:
- Detached from their emotions – numb
- Control issues
- Absence of authenticity
- Self-identity issues
- Strong desire for praise and attention from others
- Little thought about their actions and the effect on others
- Need for approval from those around them
The person with antisocial personality and narcissistic tendencies are not above using or exploiting others for their gain. While many of these folks have similarities, not every individual will have the same traits or characteristics. They may appear to those around them as just an average person, but they’re able to hide their symptoms well.
Eventually, their true colors will come to the surface. Most psychologists consider Cluster-B personas as psychopaths or sociopaths, which some belief to be a severe and incorrect diagnosis.
The word Narcopath is used to define malevolent narcissists and prevent misunderstandings of the crossover between the two conditions. Furthermore, some debate concerning sociopathy and psychopathy being closely related exists among mental health professionals. Yet, they’re distinct disorders within the same field.
How To Spot A Narcopath?
Identifying a narcopath isn’t as easy as you might think, especially since each person is unique in their symptoms. It can be pretty challenging to identify this person. They can come across as charming, witty, and even be well-groomed.
They’re masters at knowing what to say and usually have intelligence. They can read you well, so they can identify your weaknesses and play into them. Their cunning nature makes their scheme very subtle to the point where most don’t recognize what they’re doing until it’s too late.
Others may see them as ordinary, everyday people. They can blend in well with a crowd, and they won’t stand out or seem apparent. One of the things that psychologists quickly notice is that they have an aura of being better than others.
Masters of Manipulation
Since they’re master manipulators, they know how to work with other people for their gain. People who are in relationships with this type of person may be abused in all ways possible, yet those around them would be oblivious. Have you seen those made-for-TV movies where a wife lived a life of torment and no one around them knew about it?
This person is callus and doesn’t care about others. The only use they have for those around them is to use them for their gain. If someone can help them get ahead, then they will do whatever it takes to get close to that individual.
You can’t have a normal relationship with this person as they will manipulate and use you. They’re pretty charming, so they can quickly gain your love and trust, but they will only turn it around to use for their benefit. Sadly, they will feel no guilt for their actions.
Five Common Narcopath Traits and Signs To Never Ignore
You typically won’t identify that anything is off with this individual until their personality issues affect their lives and those around them. When you add sociopathic tendencies to narcissism, it can increase a selfish and evil nature. According to the National Library of Medicine, Otto Kernberg was the first to describe this disorder back in 1984. He used the following characteristics to describe this mental health issue:
- Aggression
- Paranoia
- Brutality
- A diagnosis of narcissism
- A diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder
So how do you protect yourself when this mental health diagnosis is often hard to spot? Here are five signs that you can identify in someone with this vicious form of narcissism.
1. Conversation Always Comes Back to Themselves
Like the typical narcissist, this person doesn’t care about you at all. They won’t want to be bored to tears hearing about your day when they could talk about themselves. Even if you try to speak to this person about things going on in your world, they will somehow bring the conversation back to making it all about them.
Their selfish nature is hard to deny, and they don’t have any qualms about the need to dominate the conversation.
2. A Checkered Relationship History
History is critical with any individual, as it is a good predictor of the future. You will often notice that this person won’t talk about their past, and there are no friends and family members to meet. They keep these things very concealed in their hearts because they can’t have healthy relationships.
In most instances, the family has written this person off due to their volatile behavior and can’t maintain friendships.
3. Playing Mind Games
Since you’re dealing with a master manipulator, you have probably become accustomed to their mind games. They don’t view you as a person they love or want to be around; instead, they only have affiliations with you for their gain.
Once they accomplish what they need, they won’t hesitate to drop you. A narcopath will use silence as a weapon, which is also to gain the upper hand and control you.
4. They Lack a Sense of Right and Wrong
Unlike ordinary people, the perceptions of those with this mental health disorder are skewed. While most people can define right from wrong, this person has no filters. In fact, they don’t care if something is wrong if it helps to further their agenda.
They see the world as one prominent place where there are tons of people to do their bidding. They only form “relationships” with those who will help them with their goal or scheme.
5. Their Eyes Are Empty and Hollow
One of the most frightening experiences when dealing with this sadistic form of narcissism is the look in their eyes. Perhaps, this is one of the defining ways to see if there’s any depth to them. The eyes have always been said to be the window to the soul, and it’s clear that something is lacking in the spiritual sense of this person.
When they look into your eyes, they can stare at you with a deadpan look. Some have noticed that they don’t blink a lot, but others feel that their gaze is so piercing that they’re looking straight through them.
The sad part is that it doesn’t have any substance with all the intensity their gaze brings. Behind all the piercing looks is dark nothingness. Many find it hard to look them in the eyes because they can make you feel uneasy. Is it evil that’s looking back at you?
Since this person is an untreatable narcissistic sociopath, they often commit horrific crimes with little thought. Could people like Jeffrey Dahmer have fit into this category which wasn’t known until recently? He was said to have above-average intellect, had a normal childhood, and no one thought he was anything but typical.
However, according to Biography, he killed 17 people, among other horrible acts. In theory, the average Joe living next door could have terrible secrets to hide. However, don’t be so quick to assume that only males dominate this category, as females can also be a narcopath.
Final Thoughts on Dealing with A Narcopath
There are good people in this world, and there are bad people. It’s scary when you’re dating or making new friends because you never know who will cross your path. As if having an antisocial personality or narcissism wasn’t enough, it’s a deadly combination when you mix the two.
The narcopath often flies under the radar until they do something horrible that brings attention to their mental health needs. Sadly, they’re usually the ones that make the news headlines. Learn the signs of this dangerous mental health disturbance and protect yourself.
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