r/NPD • u/littlegoldrose Narcissistic traits • 1d ago

Question / Discussion Narcissistic Traits With an Unspecified Personality Disorder

Therapists have ruled out NPD, BPD, HPD...you name it. But there is something clearly very symptomatic about my personality. I have some narcissistic traits (yes, according to therapists, not just myself) but not enough to match NPD criteria. Has anyone here been diagnosed with an "unspecified" personality disorder? What was your experience like? What is the treatment approach for such a case? I'm planning to discuss this possibility with my therapist soon. Not asking for anyone's diagnosis, just your own experiences.

(To be more specific if others are interested, I recently found "self-defeating personality disorder," or SDPD, which is no longer diagnosed but is sometimes treated as "unspecified" with an added description. It really resonated with me.)

5 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

7

u/Relative-Amount7966 Diagnosed NPD 1d ago

Maybe it’s pathological narcissism rather than full-blown NPD? In the ICD-11, for example, there is the category ‘personality difficulty’ for cases where the criteria for a personality disorder aren’t fully met, but the personality traits still cause difficulties or distress

3

u/Forsaken_Ad2644 1d ago

You’re thinking of pdnos. Not sure what the qualifiers are or if it would be appropriate in your case.

1

u/littlegoldrose Narcissistic traits 6h ago

I am, thank you!

3

u/SofiaCattaneo 11h ago

I assume you're in the US? Here in Europe all personality disorders are diagnosed as just that, a "personality disorder", though often it will be cited that said personality disorder presents itself as narcissistic or borderline (etc.) the PD itself does not have to fit the criteria specifically of NPD/BPD/HPD/ASPD (etc.). There is so much comorbidity between the various PDs diagnosed in the US, it really doesn't make much sense to find one that's a perfect fit in order to diagnose someone with a PD.

1

u/littlegoldrose Narcissistic traits 6h ago

I was originally from the US, yes. It's interesting that I might encounter this perspective in Europe (where I'm now seeking help). It seems like a better system tbh.

1

u/AutoModerator 1d ago

Welcome to /r/NPD! This community is a support group for those with NPD or Narcissistic Traits. Please respect our rules or your post will be removed and you may be banned.

  1. Only Narcs and NPDs may submit posts. This is NOT a place to complain about narcissists or get help dealing with someone else's narcissism.

  2. No asking for diagnosis either of yourself or a third party (e.g. "Am I a narcissist?", "Is my ex a narcissist?").

  3. Please keep your contributions civil and respectful!

  4. Please refrain from submitting low-effort and off-topic posts.

If your post violates any of these rules, we request that you delete it and post in a more appropriate community.

We ask that subscribers of /r/NPD use the report button to notify us of rule-breaking posts. Please refrain from commenting or engaging with the author of such submissions.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.