I'd like to direct your attention to Dr. Ramani Dursavula - clinical psychologist, professor at CSU LA, author, youtuber etc, and arguably the leading authority on Narcissism.
The problem with Narcissism as a clinical disorder is that it doesnt bear any of the classical signs of a disorder; the people who bear the symptoms of a narcissistic relationship are not the narcissist themselves, but the people around them. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that narcissists are over-represented in otherwise successful, prestigious, and competitive professions, fields, and careers, effectively calling into question the idea of dysfunction and disorder.
Narcissistic abuse is real, and it's a problem that is not getting any better by the cultural shifts brought about by mass media and technology. What's more, it isnt just the narcissist one has to be on the lookout for, there are plenty of people out their doing the bidding (they're called 'flying monkeys', ala the Wizard of Oz) of narcissists.
Arguably the worst trait of narcissists and those who work on their behalf is that of Gaslighting, which is the deliberate undermining of a person, their perspective/experience, reputation and standing, and other social interactions.
As an easy example, let's look at CNN. Let's assume for a moment that Brian Stelter, Rachel Maddow, Chris Quomo and Don Lemon arent malignant narcissists. I know, but bear with me.
It doesnt matter for those mentioned to not be narcissists if their job is to gaslight on behalf of Jeff Zucker. And what are some examples of gaslighting? Russian hackers, Quid pro quo, Epstein killed himself, Hunyer Biden, and of course muh Covid. A person can be gaslit hundreds or even thousands of times a day just by watching the TV, and that says nothing about their interpersonal interactions.
Let's look at things from a broader scope, and I'll throw out a few names. Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Dorsey, Er8c Schmidt. How many times has one or more of their companies abused one or more individuals on their platform, and has publically denied it even in the face of evidence?
The purpose of this thread is to provide examples of narcissism as well as resources and information that can enable a gradually emerging /üb/erpony to better navigate the world and some of the more nefarious players they may come into contact with. To start things off, here are some good primer videos to broach the subject, by Dr Ramani. She has hundreds of videos ranging from 6-20+ depending on how deep she goes with each topic, all relating ultimately to Narcissism, abuse, awareness, and healing. As one who has lived with narcissistic abuse for years and am only now becoming better able to identify/detect and mitigate the presence and practices of narcissists (most especially malignant ones), my hope is that the content is as informative and actionable to the viewer as I have found it.
[YouTube] Healthy vs. narcissistic relationships
[YouTube] How to NOT gaslight people
[YouTube] How a Narcissist is Created
[YouTube] What's Gaslighting? (Individual, tribe, and societal gaslighting) - Dr. Ramani Durvasula
[YouTube] Dr. Ramani Explains How-To Spot a Gaslighter
[YouTube] Intimate vs Tribal Gaslighting: Differences & How to Spot Them
[YouTube] Toxic people, religion, and spirituality (subtítulos en español)
[YouTube] Dr. Ramani Interview: Clues to SPOT the Narcissist EARLY!