Do You Have a Narcissistic Parent?
Are You an Adult Child raised by a Narcissistic Parent? Take This Brief Survey to Find Out.
Narcissism is a spectrum disorder with the most severe end of the spectrum considered a narcissistic personality disorder. A person can have several narcissistic traits and not fit the personality disorder. Parents with only a few traits listed can negatively affect their children in insidious ways which is explained in Dr. McBride’s books.
This checklist is copyrighted and comes directly from the book: Will The Drama Ever End?
Untangling and Healing from the Harmful Effects of Parental Narcissism
(Check all those that apply to your relationship with your mother or father)
- When you discuss your life issues with your parent, does he or she divert the discussion to talk about himself or herself?
- When you discuss your feelings with your parent, does he or she try to top the feeling with his or her own?
- Does your parent act jealous of you?
- Does your parent lack empathy for your feelings?
- Does your parent only support those things you do that reflect on him or her as a “good parent”?
- Have you consistently felt a lack of emotional closeness with your parent?
- Have you consistently questioned whether your parent likes you or loves you?
- Does your parent only do things for you when others can see?
- When something happens in your life (accident, illness, divorce), does your parent react with how it will affect him or her rather than how you feel?
- Is or was your parent overly conscious of what others think (neighbors, friends, family, coworkers?)
- Does your parent deny his or her own feelings?
- Does your parent blame things on you or others rather than take responsibility for his or her own feelings or actions?
- Is your parent hurt easily and then carries a grudge for a long time without resolving the problem?
- Do you feel that you were a slave to your parent?
- Do you feel responsible for your parent’s ailments (headaches, stress, and illness)?
- Did you have to take care of your parent’s physical needs as a child?
- Do you feel unaccepted by your parent?
- Do you feel your parent was critical of you?
- Do you feel helpless in the presence of your parent?
- Are you shamed often by your parent?
- Do you feel your parent knows the real you?
- Does your parent act as if the world should revolve around him or her?
- Do you find it difficult to be a separate person from your parent?
- Does your parent appear phony to you?
- Does your parent want to control your choices?
- Does your parent swing from egotistical to depressed mood?
- Did you feel you had to take care of your parent’s emotional needs as a child?
- Do you feel manipulated in the presence of your parent?
- Do you feel valued by your parent for what you do rather than who you are?
- Is your parent controlling, acting like a victim or martyr?
- Does your parent make you act different from how you really feel?
- Does your parent compete with you?
- Does your parent always have to have things his or her way?
Note: All of these questions relate to narcissistic traits. The more questions you checked, the more likely your parent has narcissistic traits and this has caused some difficulty for you as a growing son or daughter and adult.
Join The Newsletter
Sign up to receive regular updates, announcements, free resources and more.