Narcissism, narcissistic relationships, and bipolar disorder

The most powerful statement I've ever heard about narcissists is : A narcissist tries to destroy your life with lies because theirs can be destroyed with the truth.

My ex used to accuse me of having bipolar disorder all the time because his abuse would cause me to quickly go from happy to upset. As if it's abnormal to shift moods when you're being abused. Thank you Doctor Ramani <3

I've been dating someone who is both covertly narcissistic and bipolar 2, which was both a very humbling and enlightening experience. I was thankfully able to divorce myself from him, but it wasn't until I was able to figure out his pathology that I was able to navigate through all of the lies from his mania - and him just generally not being courteous enough to reciprocate the attention I gave him. To anyone else reading this, don't martyr yourself. When you've figured out what you're dealing with, you are NOT here to save anyone. Do your best and move on.

They can also use their diagnosis to be extreme bullies to get what they want.

Funny how narcs in my life have accused me of being bipolar for having emotional reactions to being treated like shit. One of the first things I asked my therapist was if she thought I was bipolar, she reassured me I wasn't. It felt so validating. I'm hoping I'll be able to go back to therapy to finally tackle this PTSD. Thank you Dr. Ramani! ❤

What about when a narcissistic abuser pushes their partner into bipolar psychosis from stress/gaslighting? I strongly believe that a lot of people (though they may have genetic predispositions) are pushed into extreme forms of mental illness due to narcissistic abuse.

Dr. RAMANI IS AN EARTH ANGEL GOD BLESS HER 💕💕💕

My Narc mom tried to get me misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder 3 separate times to make me look crazy....except I didn't meet ANY of the criteria and the psychiatrists were like stop testing her she isn't bipolar The look on my mom's face 🤣

The bi polar would come out when we were around people compared to being alone. She wanted the benefits of my company while acting like I didn’t exist in public. Terrible feeling.

Thank you so much for this video. My bf of 7 years has been dealing with untreated bipolar and it has gotten worse over the years. I ended our relationship 3 weeks ago due to the worst narcissistic rage episode he had ever unleashed on me. It was an entire day of grandiose verbally abusive behavior, one of the ugliest things I’ve ever witnessed. I was very confused because he seems to have a mixture of the two, bipolar and narcissism. The only reason it matters to me at this point is because I’m trying to understand it instead of taking his destructive words to heart. This is such an abusive combination, it will tear you down like you’ve never known. It has me questioning so much about him and everything I thought we had together. I realize now that even on his good days the narcissism was still there….I guess I got used to it because I was happy he was feeling good. I let myself be abused over and over without realizing it. It’s pure craziness and will leave you with your head spinning and your heart broken. Trust me. Best thing you can do is LEAVE and never look back!

My ex GF is heavily medicated for BIPOLAR and I can see that cycling in the background but the hardest thing to deal with was the constant comorbid narcissism that was always present regardless. I can well and truly understand how some partners of these conditions end up with PTSD. Thanks for continuing to raise awareness.

Honestly, all "mental illnesses" overlap symptoms. In the end, I believe those are just symptoms of the same disease: abuse/neglect/trauma.

Yep my ex tried to convince me I had bipolar because my moods went up and down. Turns out my moods were up and down for good reason, Narcissistic abuse. Depression, anxiety, and ptsd. I'm almost 3 years out of that marriage nightmare, and my life is great. Depression is gone, no medication, no doctors visits, lost 30kgs and fit and healthy, working full time in my own business, and have a healthy relationship with a new partner. To anyone in the same position i was in, HANG IN THERE! things get better.

My ex husband has both bipolar 1 and narcissistic behaviours. I've never seen anyone address the possibility that they can have both before. I found this really helpful. Thank you!

I was recenlty in a relationship with a man who was diagnosed ADHD & Bi Polar, and also described himself as being borderline Aspbergers. A week or so after we started to live together I began to be treated in this horrible way. I first noticed a lack of empathy, then mocking, humilation, constant cristicism, bullying, gas lighting, negging, bread crumbing, triangulation, projection and a lack of respect for bondaries etc etc etc. This caused me to have extreme anxiety which my partner labeled as the real problem between us. I deeply cared for this person and I am sure I was trauma bonded as well. I was so beyond stressed trying to cope with this relatinship. It was breaking my heart and destroying my sense of self worth. No matter how hard I tried to appeal to him to understand what he was doing, he would always shift the blame back to me. Me talking about our problems and my reaction to his abuse were the REAL problems according to him. Anytime I tried to talk about the abuse he would give me the silent treatment leaving the house for days at a time with no mention of where he was going or when he would be back. I was so on edge I told him to move out about every two weeks, but would take it back as I deeply cared for this man regardless of all these problems. I started to Google this behavior and it initially came up as Asbergers. I tried to bring this up with him as he had said himself he believed he was on the spectrum for Aspbergers. He exploded in anger would not speak to me and then left our home again for days in a row. I then ended the realtionship. My PTSD from this treatment was severe and as I sought help from mental health professionals they informed me that what he had done was in fact abuse, and said that this person likely a Bi Polar Narcissist, a Covert Narcissit to be exact. As I started doing lots of research I coun't believe it. It was like he had followed the exact script of a Covert Narc. I was just stunned that the exact treatment I had received from him was outlined to the letter in so many sources on NPD. Of course I felt like I was loosing my mind during the realationship as I was to blame for everything going wrong. HIs big line was "Love is about acceptance" and then only way I could get this man to treat me with a tiny bit of love and affection was to NEVER react or speak about his horrible treatment of me. Of course he will never be diagnosed with NPD because he woud always portray himself as the victim to his therapist. So this cycle will continue on and on. This expererience has without a doubt been the most toxic and stressful realtionship of my life. The amount of pain, confusion and stress this type of diagnosis can cause is extreme. My heart goes out to anyone who has ever been in any type of realtionship with a Bi-Polar Narcissist.

My ex narc used to excuse his abuse towards me by saying he has bipolar. This video was very helpful. Now I know all those were lies to keep me feeling pity for him and justifying his behaviour. Thank you Dr. Ramani.

It’s been 3 months since I’ve seen my narc in person. Still healing. Anyone else wish you could speed up time?

I guess I’m completely screwed then being with a man for almost thirty years & only learning in the last few years exactly how sick my husband truly is? It’s terrifying to live this way! I’ve always,always have said when my husband comes home we never know if we’re dealing with Jekyll or Hyde? TERRIFYING

Bipolar 2 here. It’s totally treatable, but I am extremely empathetic. It’s wildn

When my son was little he said that his dad was “tripolar”-either mad,sad or glad. Out of the mouths of babes.