do you think people with NPD or ASPD still owe other people “human decency” (i.e. faking empathy if you don’t have it, listening to people rant and vent to you, etc)?
as a person with NPD myself, I find this question important and convoluted. Because on the one hand, nobody should be allowed to get away with murder or rape or anything like that, regardless of why you did it. But on the other hand, smaller masking like pretending to care about someone who’s hurt when you don’t is also bad for you as a person
But people not only expect but often NEED at least the semblance of people caring for them, which makes it hard when “unmasking” is both good for you but also has the potential to hurt others. I have NPD but I still want friends, so I hug them when they’re sad and give them advice etc, because I like them being around me and know if I’m mean they’ll leave. But sometimes I just don’t have the mental capacity to pretend to care. If I’m in a really bad mood or something
so tldr. Do you think pwNPD or ASPD always, sometimes, or never owe it to their friends to fake empathy if they don’t have it? Is it different with strangers than friends? Why?
I think all people should try to hold some semblance of respect for others. But I don’t think people with low empathy should have to perform all conventional social gestures. There’s a fine line between being mean and being honest. If someone’s cat died and you don’t have the energy to pretend to care, you don’t need to put a ton of effort into comforting them. But that doesn’t mean you should say smth like “you’re pathetic, stop crying about it”.
What you do need to consider is reciprocal energy. If you constantly vent to someone and you never let them vent to you, you’ve created an unequal power dynamic that isn’t healthy, which may cause the other person to feel upset or resentful. Now, maybe this person always listens to you vent but you always give them great gifts or take them out to fun places. Now you have reciprocal energy because you both express your affection in a different way. This kind of plays into the concept of “love languages”, which I believe can be anything. I don’t think you should be forced to try to have reciprocal energy, but your relationships and friendships may fail if you’re unable to reciprocate in some fashion that works for you. Unequal dynamics typically don’t last long, even if they FEEL good to people with low empathy, high ego disorders. Some people don’t mind not having reciprocal energy, or even enjoy being the one to give while you receive. But keep in mind not all people are like that.
To sum it up, you can do whatever you want. But some people may have needs they want met and if you’re unable to meet them, they may not have an interest in being close to you. It’s important to be clear upfront about your limitations so you can meet the right people who accept you as you are