How do Deal with a Narcissist in Your Family! Four Tips That Could Come in Useful!

As per the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition) manual of mental disorders, a sizeable amount of the adult population in the USA, at least 6% may suffer from a narcissistic personality disorder. That accounts for at least 20 million people.

Chances are good that someone you know maybe a narcissist. Well, if it is the case it may turn out to be a difficult proposition to deal with the cons that come from living with a narcissistic person. The barrage of criticisms, arrogant statements, and constant craving for attention may turn out to be exhausting.

Here are certain ways you can deal with it.

Don’t Point Out Their Mistakes

Pointing mistakes is tempting, but it is not always the best solution and in some cases, it may get worse.  Usually calling a narcissist a narcissist is the last thing you should be doing.

However, people with narcissistic personality disorder sometimes may become obsessed with the fact that it’s not they who has a problem, but you.

The truth is you may not give them insight into themselves, even with your best intentions and it may make your relationship worse.

So, stop, pointing out mistakes and thinking you are providing valuable insight because a narcissist seldom thinks he/she is wrong.

Don’t Enter Into Arguments With Them

The very reason you should stop giving them insight or what you think about them, for the same reason you should not argue with them too.

Most narcissists tend to see things in all-or-nothing terms so they blame you and consider themselves as victims.

You can’t change the blame game scenario nor can you change the fact, that they consider themselves as victims. They hardly focus on their faults, which may be the root cause of their problem.

Arguing will only make them more defensive. Narcissists often blame their partners for not being intelligent enough or as intelligent as them. They continue to make others feel lesser than they are.

In high-conflict divorces, narcissists start the blame game of how incompetent their partners are in all the roles they play as parents, morally, financially, and even otherwise. They constantly brag about how wonderful they are and how they would treat them differently if they change themselves.  All they are doing to do is protect their superior self-image as they divorce their partners. They haven’t failed at their marriage, and you may be the culprit!

Get Support for Them

Often people feel helpless when dealing with a narcissistic family member. You are at a receiving end with a dwindling sense of self-esteem that may be worn down, after all the constant barrage of insults, criticisms, and public humiliation.

Yet the situation may not get out of control if you seek help from your friends and/or professionals, such as counselors.

You will get a fresh perspective and learn without getting embarrassed. There are millions of narcissists in the world and they make your family members less than themselves.

People may even think that they are facing a unique problem and they may not deserve counseling.  However, there is nothing to be ashamed of. One of your family members may be suffering from this disorder and they do not know they are suffering from it themselves. So, they need help too, the best way to cater to your problem is to visit a counselor so that both parties get help when they need it most.

Conclusion

For example, there have been cases of adults, children, parents, siblings, who gain strength as they discuss their distressful situation with a therapist or friends. This will help you find a step-by-step course of action on how to deal with their narcissistic family member.

In most cases, narcissistic family members are asked to distance themselves emotionally from the rest of the family members to find a fresh perspective and they can take a break from pandering in narcissism. There are cases where narcissist people have an underlying cause to behave the way to do, the superiority complex may be a mask for hiding their underlying inferiority complex.

Sometimes their behavior may stem from an incident that happened long back in their childhood. A therapist will talk to him/her and find out exactly why they are suffering from narcissistic behavior and then treat them accordingly. The therapist will help the person work through the various complex feelings and address narcissistic personality disorder the right way.