Drug and alcohol abuse complicates narcissistic personality disorder and worsens side effects such as depression and anxiety. For both narcissists and addicts, the major casualty is the destruction of personal relationships. The combination can severely affect the individual’s health, social, and professional life. It can also affect others, including the family and friends of the narcissistic alcoholic person, equally. In many cases, it may be crucial for loved ones to maintain distance from the affected person to minimize risks and issues.

As Someone Living With NPD and AUD

Some common traits of individuals with both narcissism and alcohol addiction include a sense of entitlement, grandiosity, impulsivity, and a lack of empathy. As a result, these characteristics can make it difficult for them to maintain healthy relationships and engage in self-destructive behavior. Narcissism is a personality disorder that may cause individuals to display grandiose and self-involved behaviors.

Rate of Recovery With Mental Illness

Research has shown that there is an overlap between alcohol use disorder and personality disorders, including NPD. One study found that among individuals who reported alcohol use, 9.1% were diagnosed with NPD at some point narcissism and alcoholism during their lives [1]. Individuals with narcissistic traits may struggle to maintain healthy and meaningful connections with others due to their self-centeredness, lack of empathy, and need for constant admiration.

• Vulnerable narcissists, on the other hand, suffer an underlying sense of insecurity, hypersensitivity to criticism, and fragile self-esteem.
• By recognizing the unique challenges faced by those struggling with an alcoholic narcissist dynamic, interventions and treatment options can be tailored to promote healing, personal growth, and recovery.
• Another reason narcissists are at risk of becoming addicted to alcohol is that they believe they’re impervious to its negative effects.
• Both conditions may influence the other, and some symptoms or behaviors of each condition can overlap.
• During conversations, they don’t seem to process what other people tell them.
• Find up-to-date statistics on lifetime drinking, past-year drinking, past-month drinking, binge drinking, heavy alcohol use, and high-intensity drinking.

Charitable Care & Financial Assistance

A shocking 26% to 52% of people with substance abuse issues have also experienced post-traumatic stress disorder. Negative and disrupted attachment, neglect and maltreatment, high-conflict divorce, and abuse are examples of traumatic cycles during childhood. People seek to avoid these heartbreak variations but often find themselves deeply enmeshed in a similar adult situation. To cope with the abuse of living with a narcissistic abuser, the victim turns to self-medication through substance abuse. Suggest that the alcoholic narcissist seek professional help to address both their addiction and narcissistic traits.

Once they receive this affirmation, they experience grandiosity and may behave in an arrogant and entitled way. However, without affirmation, the same individual may feel depressed and ashamed. Therefore, the presence or absence of external validations of their value determines whether a person may have the traits of grandiose narcissism or vulnerable narcissism. People with alcohol use disorder will continue to drink even when drinking causes negative consequences, like losing a job or destroying relationships with people they love. They may know that their alcohol use negatively affects their lives, but it’s often not enough to make them stop drinking. Alcoholism is a complex disorder with various underlying causes, and it can affect individuals from all walks of life.

What’s the outlook for people with NPD or AUD?

Alcoholic Narcissist: How the Two Conditions Are Related

How are narcissists and alcoholics similar?