This means that their love often feels superficial and inauthentic because any meaningful connection orempathydoesn’t accompany it.
Narcissists have difficulty maintaining meaningful connections, so theirform of loveis often shallow and fleeting.
“Do they take your feelings and needs into consideration?
Getty / Jamie Grill
Are they able to put your happiness first, even when it doesn’t directly benefit them?
If the answer is ‘yes,’ then it’s possible that they may indeed love you.”
Dr. Flora notes, however, that this requires self-reflection on the narcissist’s part.
Do they take the time to listen to your feelings?
Do they respect your boundaries and take responsibility for their actions?
Do they make you feel valued and appreciated?
What Does a Narcissist Think Love Is?
They do not understand that real love involves reciprocity.
Their love depends on their partner’s unconditional admiration, often leading to toxic andone-sided dynamics.
They do not understand that real love involves reciprocity.
Additionally, a narcissist’s idea of love is usually very superficial.
They may beoverly affectionate or quickly profess their undying lovewithout having developed any meaningful connection with their partner.
Can a Narcissist Ever Be Happy in a Relationship?
With therapy and self-reflection, some narcissists can learn to become more compassionate and understanding toward their partners.
What Happens When a Narcissist Falls in Love?
When narcissists fall in love, they become obsessed with being adored and admired by their partners.
They may shower them with compliments and gifts or attempt tomanipulatethem through grand gestures of affection.
They may belittle their partner as self-protection if they don’t feel that admiration.
The depth of love may be on the shallower side or expressed immaturely.
They may believe love looks like gift-giving, proximity, or physical intimacy."
They can understand their limitations with therapy and self-reflection and become more empathetic toward their partners.
In doing so, they may be able to create a meaningful connection that brings joy rather than suffering.
Baskin-Sommers A, Krusemark E, Ronningstam E.Empathy in narcissistic personality disorder: from clinical and empirical perspectives.Personal Disord.
Collective narcissism predicts ingroup image defense, outgroup prejudice, and lower ingroup loyalty.Br J Soc Psychol.
2017;112(2):280-306. doi:10.1037/pspp0000113
Ronningstam E.Narcissistic personality disorder: a clinical perspective.J Psychiatr Pract.
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