A man with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) explains how 'overwhelming' it can be living with the pathological disorder.
Lee Hammock, 39, from North Carolina, US, has been diagnosed with NPD while symptoms often range from lying and manipulating to losing touch with reality.
People who suffer with NPD generally have an increased sense of self-importance, a deep need for admiration and a lack of empathy for others.
Taking to TikTok (@mentalhealness), the father-of-three has opened up about what it's like to live with NPD and how 'becoming aware of it is a wild ride'.
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"Once you become aware of it and you're actively trying to work on it like I am, l've been in psychotherapy for seven years, right," he said.
"It's like you have to kind of relearn your whole entire experience.
"Like not only do I have to process my own feelings and make sure that I'm acting accordingly, I have to process other people's feelings as well.
"And sometimes it can be overwhelming."
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The content creator compared it to having a 'big dam in place, holding back my emotions and blocking out the emotions of other people'.
He continued: "And now that I've become aware of it and I've been working on it for so long, it's like that dam, it hasn't come tumbling down.
"But it's being lowered every time I go to therapy, the more work that I do.
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"And more feelings are rushing in and more feelings are rushing out.
"As a person who struggled with being emotionally vulnerable, the entirety of my 39 years on this planet, it's it's a tough thing to deal with, a tough thing in the process but I'm working on it."
On gaining a large following online, Hammock admitted: "I wasn't doing this stuff online, [it] originally started off as kind of my accountability to myself and then it just kind of blew up to where it is right now, of me talking to other people, helping thousands of people across the world and things like that, but it's still a work in [progress].
"Like even after seven years of therapy, my very first thought is narcissistic.
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"But l have to l have to slow myself down and process it and ask myself like is this really productive for me? How is this gonna benefit me?
"How is this going to benefit other people, is this going to destroy me?
"It's so many things going inside of my head y'all."
Lee Hammock runs YouTube channel Mental Healness, along with coaching sessions for narcissists and victims of narcisstic abuse. He is also working on his first book.
Topics: Mental Health, Health, TikTok
Anish Vij