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Difference between diagnoses NPD and people who are overly full of themselves?

Can anyone actually explain the difference between someone whose overly confident and full of themselves and somebody who has been diagnosed with a legit mental disorder?

I’m looking at symptoms of npd and a lot of it is thinking your better then everyone else,showing off your body etc etc (I know it’s deeper than that) most of the things Seem like a lot of people who are just really full of themselves.

What is the legit difference and underlining things only people with npd would have cause it’s confusing rn

I’m into psychology but I’m also struggling with my mental health in general so looking at the dsm 5.
Disclaimer: I don't know the DSM-5 criteria for NPD off the cuff, I have a PD, I am not a professional.

First, I think it is important to consider what a personality disorder actually is- it's a long-term pattern of thinking, feeling, behaving or relating to people in a way that differs from the norm.

Everyone will display traits that could be associated with personality disorders at some point in their life time. This doesn't mean that everyone has a personality disorder- if everyone has a PD, no one would have a PD.

Transient over-confidence isn't indicative of a PD, because it is just that- transient.

A longer term pattern of over-confidence would only be indicative of PD if the individual presented with several other symptoms. To receive a diagnosis of NPD according to the DSM-5 you would have to hit several other parts of the criteria.


The DSM-5 probably isn't the best tool to use to learn about the psychological phenomenon of narcissism- it's a medical manual. The diagnostic criteria for 'NPD' has attracted a significant amount of criticism because people suffering from fragile narcissism would be would be unlikely to meet the diagnostic for NPD, despite being impaired.

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