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Narcissism

questdriven said:
...love of self (narcissism) could be rooted in a mental illness/personality disorder.
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It's definitely a personality disorder. That is what makes it sin.

It's cause is the root of all the ills of mankind--fear. Pride is so often a person's natural defense against what they fear.

Are some more prone than others biologically to becoming narcissistic? IMO, yes.
 
Jesse said:
I don't want to open a can of worms here, but some people believe this could be cured by laying on of hands and expelling evil spirits. I know pastors who will say that this really doesn't exist, that all mental illness IS from evil spirits.

I'm not saying I believe this, but I do wonder sometimes if some of it could be gotten rid of this way.
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I personally believe all sin is energized and supported by evil spirits to some degree or another. So that part of it can definitely be expelled through the ministry of healing. The rest is the growing up of the person into the knowledge of the ways of God--that renewing of the mind thing Paul talks about.

I believe a narc can learn to identify his own destructive thoughts and behaviors through education. From there they can begin to learn to not cave into the fear that puts them in bondage to those thoughts and behaviors. This is definitely a spiritual thing, IMO.
 
My case is a little different because....

...my records were filled with lies and omissions. My treatment providers hated me. I was on high dose (60mgs/day) Adderall by Rx and benzos not by Rx (I got addicted...by a different doc, lol). My parents were mean and frustrated. My mother is in the social sciences, so she is/was inclined to not even *believe* in mental illness at all, unless she's in a mood to be compassionate.

Plus, I was really just an out of control teen and early 20 something. I realize now that my "narcissism," such as it was, may have been situational. And made worse by drugs. My people were middle class back then, so I wasn't "important" enough for treatment providers to do anything. At all. My first shrink, the one who got me hooked on Klonopin (3mgs/day for an 18 year old? Plus Ambien at night?) told people I'd be "dead by 23." Seriously.

Now...fast forward. I'm 30. Receive disability for Bipolar I w/psychotic features. My people are now some kinda affluent (I don't understand the class scale, but I'd say upper middle class, maybe lower rung of the upper class). They have advanced degrees. My dad forgave me for wasting too much money and all that. I'm healthy and increasingly normal. Perhaps most importantly--I mean, besides being a Born Again Christian--my masculinity is developing. More masculine facial features, more masculine attributes, personality, etc. So...

...it makes me wonder. What's crazy is that if my people were still "rinky dink middle class" (direct quote from the neighbors), I'd probably be on a court order...and diagnosed with schizophrenia. If my people weren't behind me, I'd probably be in the loverly state mental hospital, where losers and ne'er do wells often end up.

So..yeah...it seems like a lot of factors went into my diagnosis of NPD besides...you know...actual NPD.
 
Jesse said:
I don't want to open a can of worms here, but some people believe this could be cured by laying on of hands and expelling evil spirits. I know pastors who will say that this really doesn't exist, that all mental illness IS from evil spirits.

I'm not saying I believe this, but I do wonder sometimes if some of it could be gotten rid of this way.
Click to expand...
Sorry I am not into that at all.Praying to Jesus to put His healing hand on a person is great but the hands on taking out the evil spirits is not my cup of tea.
 
Christ_empowered said:
My case is a little different because....

...my records were filled with lies and omissions. My treatment providers hated me. I was on high dose (60mgs/day) Adderall by Rx and benzos not by Rx (I got addicted...by a different doc, lol). My parents were mean and frustrated. My mother is in the social sciences, so she is/was inclined to not even *believe* in mental illness at all, unless she's in a mood to be compassionate.

Plus, I was really just an out of control teen and early 20 something. I realize now that my "narcissism," such as it was, may have been situational. And made worse by drugs. My people were middle class back then, so I wasn't "important" enough for treatment providers to do anything. At all. My first shrink, the one who got me hooked on Klonopin (3mgs/day for an 18 year old? Plus Ambien at night?) told people I'd be "dead by 23." Seriously.

Now...fast forward. I'm 30. Receive disability for Bipolar I w/psychotic features. My people are now some kinda affluent (I don't understand the class scale, but I'd say upper middle class, maybe lower rung of the upper class). They have advanced degrees. My dad forgave me for wasting too much money and all that. I'm healthy and increasingly normal. Perhaps most importantly--I mean, besides being a Born Again Christian--my masculinity is developing. More masculine facial features, more masculine attributes, personality, etc. So...

...it makes me wonder. What's crazy is that if my people were still "rinky dink middle class" (direct quote from the neighbors), I'd probably be on a court order...and diagnosed with schizophrenia. If my people weren't behind me, I'd probably be in the loverly state mental hospital, where losers and ne'er do wells often end up.

So..yeah...it seems like a lot of factors went into my diagnosis of NPD besides...you know...actual NPD.
Click to expand...
I stopped short of saying in my previous post that I thought narcissists are actually the ones who mis-diagnosed you. Seriously.
 
In the psychoanalytic tradition--the people who brough us the concept in the early 1900s--it has something to do with early childhood experiences. Trauma, pain, bad parental attachment. My wild guess is that it gets reinforced in not so great family situations. NPD wasn't put into the DSM until 1980 or so, decades after psychoanalysts had begun dealing with it.

Jesse...

...I don't know about evil spirits being the cause of everything, but I think they play a role. Like, when I lost my mind at 23, I heard voices telling me to kill myself. I also had visions, and bits and pieces of what I saw came to pass. That's not of God and that's not *normal* under any situations.
 
Too late Jesse ... I have the idea you may be using this often..
images
 
Jethro Bodine said:
I personally believe all sin is energized and supported by evil spirits to some degree or another. So that part of it can definitely be expelled through the ministry of healing. The rest is the growing up of the person into the knowledge of the ways of God--that renewing of the mind thing Paul talks about.

I believe a narc can learn to identify his own destructive thoughts and behaviors through education. From there they can begin to learn to not cave into the fear that puts them in bondage to those thoughts and behaviors. This is definitely a spiritual thing, IMO.
Click to expand...
It just seems that there is a lot of people on anti-depressants and anti-psychotic drugs today, and a person does have to wonder why. The Bible does say that if anyone is sick, to go to the elders and have them lay hands on them. He can heal diseases and rid us of evil spirits, too, so for me it would be worth the try! He is the Great Healer!
 
reba said:
Too late Jesse ... I have the idea you may be using this often..
images
Click to expand...
Yes, all 'can of worms' have an easy pull tab on them in this forum.

I can always tell when someone has opened a can of worms in the forums....my cat comes galloping into the room.
 
Jethro Bodine said:
Yes, all 'can of worms' have an easy pull tab on them in this forum.

I can always tell when someone has opened a can of worms in the forums....my cat comes galloping into the room.
Click to expand...
Can of worms.....nope.If I got a can of tuna out of the cupboard she would come running in.Mental telepathy?
 
well...I tend to think that too many people are in therapy, counseling, or on meds. And it makes me wonder...why? I read this sociologist writing about it...like, before, behaviors were "sinful," so churches could deal with them. Some were illegal, so law would deal with them. Now, they're "sick" and mental health people deal with them...and make a lot of money doing it.
 
Jethro Bodine said:
Yes, all 'can of worms' have an easy pull tab on them in this forum.

I can always tell when someone has opened a can of worms in the forums....my cat comes galloping into the room.
Click to expand...
My cat would go more for a can of fish.
 
Kathi said:
Can of worms.....nope.If I got a can of tuna out of the cupboard she would come running in.Mental telepathy?
Click to expand...
Do you have to wonder if cats have mental telepathy? Mine does.

Actually, the cat is my daughter's. And you know how that usually works out, right? :lol
 
I know there are real mental problems and that is in a way different category..

IF the millions of so called mentally ill were well some one would be out of a high paying job...
 
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