The Megalomaniac Person: 7 Characteristics
Do you know someone who believes that everything they say, think or do is great? If the answer is yes, you are probably dealing with a megalomaniac. This is a type of person who looks down on others because they consider themselves superior to them, because of an oversized ego. But how to identify them?
Although it is quite common to meet people who are proud of themselves, who have an optimistic view of their abilities and believe themselves capable of anything, we may find it difficult to identify them as megalomaniacs. In general, one should know that their high self-concept comes with a rejection or contempt for everything around them.
Megalomania, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) is a psychological illness included in narcissistic personality disorder, as a symptomatology. However, to know if a person has megalomania as part of a disorder, one needs to pay attention to see if they are exhibiting delusions or not. Does she have desires for power, importance and omnipotence that lead her to see herself as the best?
Great megalomaniac characters of history
Historical figures like Napoleon Bonaparte, Hitler, Stalin or Mao Zedong are personalities who have been attributed traits of megalomania and narcissism. Traits that made some of these people want to conquer the world.
If we delve deeper into their idiosyncrasy, we discover that these characters saw themselves as the only ones who could save their territories and conquer new countries to expand their homeland. They saw themselves as indispensable saviors and were always in search of greater power. It plunged them into a spiral of real delirium.
You should know that people who have this impulse and want to become the sole agents of the greatest conquests, by having the impression of benefiting from absolute power, see their pathological symptoms worsen precisely because they believe they are responsible and capable of reaching the unattainable. As history has shown, they have become very dangerous and capable of the worst deeds.
So, a megalomaniac has a disproportionate self-concept. However, even if he seems confident, if we analyze his personality in depth, we can see that these are individuals who have a lot of deficiencies, suffer from a feeling of inferiority. unexpected and a great social vacuum.
7 characteristics to detect a megalomaniac person
- They are extremely pretentious. According to them, their presence is essential in any meeting.
- They believe they are indestructible, capable of solving any problem. To gain greater power, they are capable of anything. It even includes the manipulation of others.
- They behave as if they are omnipotent and like to test the abilities of those around them so that they can brag about their own faculties.
- Megalomaniac people do not learn from their mistakes, and therefore, the experience does not make them correct their faults.
- They have a narcissistic and idealized image of themselves.
- They are extremely careful about how others react to what they say or do. If they are rejected because of their maladjusted behaviors, they think the problem is with others.
- Vanity, along with an oversized ego fueled by a very intense superiority complex, causes them to despise anything that is not their concern.
What is behind the personality of a megalomaniac?
The megalomaniac refuses to admit that he hides in himself a frightened person, complexed and lacking in affection. He therefore uses verbal aggression or the imposition of his false omnipotence as a defense mechanism.
Also, because of his fear of seeing someone better than him, he ridicules anyone who would make him feel in danger. So he hurts anyone they see as a threat to his ego. However, behind this mask, we find a person full of insecurity, with a feeling of incapacity, who struggles not to be vulnerable in front of others.
The arrogance and behavioral excess of the megalomaniac often causes him to feel extremely lonely, as he is generally not accepted by others. It also happens that he isolates himself; his sense of superiority keeps him away from interacting with those people he sees as inferior.
This loneliness, whether “received” or “self-imposed”, leads to a great feeling of emotional emptiness, which can further aggravate the discomfort and the pathological symptoms.
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