Archives for April 2012

Man, it's not easy out there. Your partner clearly has a major personality disturbance, but sometimes separating borderline, narcissistic and sociopathic behavior can be hard. Real tough. Especially when there are spill-over behaviors, cross-contaminating behaviors and attitudes (as there often are) that further muddy the diagnostic waters. Let's look at rage, for instance. Rage is a major marker of the borderline and narcissistic personality. Sociopaths, being essentially malignant, high-end narcissists, like any full-blown narcissist, are also capable of frightful, bullying, abusive rages. The borderline's rage, much like the narcissist's, tends to be elicted by disappoinment. And it's …

Differentiating the sociopath from the borderline from the narcissistRead More

The concept of the sociopath as “masking sanity,” originally from Hervey Cleckley, MD, and since as confirmed and elaborated by other experts, is certainly chilling, great, profound and often-times apt. But I'd suggest we be careful not to apply it too indiscriminately. In other words, not all sociopaths “wear masks” in the classic sense of Cleckley's concept. For this reason, if you're looking for “masks” as a prerequisite to confirming the sociopath, you risk missing the sociopath. Some sociopaths are more manifestly who they are—sociopaths. They aren't “masking” much of anything. They aren't necessarily taking brilliant precautions to conceal themselves. Like many human beings the …

When the sociopath isn’t wearing a maskRead More

I wrote in my last article about stonewalling, that nefarious process (and pattern) of shutting down a partner's communication either aggressively, or passive aggressively, the effect of which is to leave the “stonewalled” partner feeling voiceless, alone, dismissed, negated as a person. Many sociopathic personalities stonewall, but many stonewallers aren't sociopaths, so how do you tell the difference? What are some signs that your partner's stonewalling is an aspect of his “sociopathy” versus, say, his high “conflict-avoidant” personality? Clearly some individuals are terrible at dealing with communication in general and conflict in particular. Their stonewalling may be mainly avoidan …

Is your stonewaller a sociopath, or someone else? Stonewalling, Part IIRead More

Many, many people who were romantically involved with sociopaths have told me that the sex was amazing. Earth-moving. The best they ever had. At least, that's how it was in the beginning, while the sociopath was still reeling them in. The targets thought this amazing sex was proof of the real connection between themselves and the sociopath, proof that the two of them were wildly, deeply in love. The truth is that sociopaths are incapable of love. Oh, they're capable of feeling attraction. And they're capable of proclaiming love, very convincingly (especially when they're looking for sex). But they are not capable of genuine concern for another person's welfare, which is a key component …

Sociopaths, sex and powerRead More

Stonewalling is when someone shuts you down from communicating. He just “bails” on your efforts at communication, refuses to take you seriously; refuses to engage a discussion of your concerns. He may ignore or dismiss you, express fatigue with you (and your concerns); he may listen without offering a thoughtful, respectful response, and then credit himself for having listened, perhaps even listened at a length he may complain about. In any case his unthoughtful, lazy, dismissive, or flat-out non-response to your feelings and concerns captures the essence of stonewalling and will reflect his pure contempt for which he'll take no responsibility. Rather, he may depict you as a boring w …

When the sociopath stonewalls youRead More