Heal NPD

The "Weekly Insights" series is for paid members of Dr. Ettensohn's Heal NPD Youtube channel. In the short-term, Dr. Ettensohn is posting all even-numbered episodes free of charge. If you would like access to the full series, please follow this link:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHeT5kujD1JqHRAi-x8xD-w/join

In this weekly insight, Dr. Ettensohn discusses the limitations of polarized or dichotomous thinking, particularly when i...

The "Weekly Insights" series is for paid members of Dr. Ettensohn's Heal NPD Youtube channel. In the short-term, Dr. Ettensohn is posting all even-numbered episodes free of charge. If you would like access to the full series, please follow this link:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHeT5kujD1JqHRAi-x8xD-w/join

What’s the difference between healthy self-love and pathological narcissism?

In this week's episode of Weekly insights, D...

The "Weekly Insights" series is for paid members of Dr. Ettensohn's Heal NPD Youtube channel. In the short-term, Dr. Ettensohn is posting all even-numbered episodes free of charge. If you would like access to the full series, please follow this link:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHeT5kujD1JqHRAi-x8xD-w/join

In this episode of the members-only "Weekly Insights" series, Dr. Ettensohn reflects on the positives and negatives of gr...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn explores the insights of Alice Miller regarding  emotional abandonment and narcissistic use of the child, focusing on how these early dynamics shape pathological narcissism and Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD).

Drawing from Miller’s groundbreaking work, Dr. Ettensohn examines how a child growing up in a narcissogenic environment learns to adapt by creating a false self—a facade designed to sec...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn draws on psychodynamic dimensional models of personality development to describe narcissism and NPD at the borderline level.

Characterized by identity diffusion, blurred boundaries, and disrupted internal experience, borderline personality organization represents an "in between" level where the perceptions of the self and others float in and out of clear focus.

This episode reviews the important conce...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn draws on psychodynamic dimensional models of personality development to describe narcissism and NPD at the psychotic level.

Characterized by compromised reality testing, symbiotic object relations, low integration between parts of the self, and the use of reality-distorting defense mechanisms, psychotic-level NPD represents both the least developmentally mature and most severe form of the disorder.

Th...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn draws heavily on his own research concerning pathological narcissism and attachment patterns, using attachment theory as a lens to focus explanatory power onto the often confusing dynamics of NPD.

Beginning with a general overview of Bartholomew's four-prototype model of adult attachment, Dr. Ettensohn identifies the most common attachment patterns of individuals with NPD. He describes the relevant re...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn addresses 5 common misconceptions about pathological narcissism and NPD:

1. NPD is not a mental illness

2. NPD is not treatable

3. Even if NPD is treatable, actual healing is impossible

4. All individuals with NPD are abusers

5. People with NPD change their behavior behind closed doors, so they can't be mentally ill

Using authoritative mental health resources like the American Psychiatric Association,...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn discusses the important topic of boundaries. He provides a definition of interpersonal boundaries, discusses the reasons why boundaries are important for mental health and healthy relationships, discusses the problems with boundaries that often occur in pathological narcissism and NPD, and provides some basic tips for assertive behavior.

Purchase Unmasking Narcissism: A Guide to Understanding the N...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn explores the possible causes of narcissistic rage, referencing the work of Ernest S. Wolf, a close collaborator with Heinz Kohut and author of the book 'Treating the Self: Elements of Clinical Self Psychology."

Dr. Ettensohn discusses the ways in narcissistic rage functions as a defense of the unbearably wounded self and results from implicit confusion between self and other rooted in traumatic early ...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn discusses the topic of self-awareness in NPD. Numerous commenters have shared their belief that narcissists "know what they are doing"...that they are fully aware of the harm caused by their behaviors. Centering the conversation in the idea of mental illness, Dr. Ettensohn discusses the faulty attributions, skewed perceptions, and interpersonal deficits often associated with pathological narcissism an...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn outline 4 reasons why empathy may be impaired in pathological narcissism and NPD:

1. Lack of self awareness 2. Objectification of the self and others 3. A 'starvation mindset' 4. Avoidant attachment styles

Dr. Ettensohn also discusses his disagreement with Dr. Ramani's ideas concerning empathy and NPD, as expressed in the following video on her channel: https://youtu.be/O7qxMu3nSLw

Purchase Unmask...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn explores the connection between illness anxiety and pathological narcissism. This episode explores how illness anxiety in NPD can be disguised anxiety about loss of self or psychological disintegration.

Purchase Unmasking Narcissism: A Guide to Understanding the Narcissist in Your Life here: https://amzn.to/3nG9FgH

LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS: https://rb.gy/cklpum LISTEN ON GOOGLE PODCASTS: https://rb.g...

The term ‘narcissistic abuse’ has been, itself, heavily abused. Is has largely been a pop-psychology term that means different things depending on how and where it is used. It is often used to demonize individuals with pathological narcissism and NPD, who represent an at-risk population for depression, self-harm, and suicide. 

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn provides a new definition for narcissistic abuse - one that is *actually* s...

In this episode, Dr. Ettensohn discusses the emptiness that individuals with pathological narcissism and NPD often experience using the concept of ‘Self as Object.’ 

Individuals with pathological narcissism and NPD often report having been treated as an object for someone else’s gratification in childhood. This early exploitation can cause profound disconnect from emotional authenticity, because it necessitates the development of f...