Appreciating People with Disabilities & Demystifying Narcissism

Dr Karenne Hills was once a registered nurse before switching over to a career in counselling. She has been a counsellor for 25 years, a lecturer of counselling for 11 years, and her areas of expertise and interest are in children and adults with disabilities. 

 

In this podcast, Dr Karenne Hills provided a deeply empathetic and educated exploration two major issues: Making meaning with people with disabilities and demystifying narcissism. The initial part of the podcast explored:

how she conducted research with non-verbal poets,

her journey as a mother raising two children with disabilities, 

how she made meaning from her struggles, and

how she recognised the gifts and value of people with disabilities. 

 

The rest of the podcast dives into the clinical definitions of narcissism, the types of narcissism, the psychological makeup of people with narcissistic personality disorders, how narcissism develops, and how it manifests. 

 

Dr Karenne speculated over how narcissism manifests due to gender differences, highlights how strongly narcissism impacts the family, influences of family of origin, and lead to the development of codependency in intimate partners. She also talks about:

the patterns that develop within the individuals and families living with a narcissistic personality,

what couple counselling looks like,  

growing up with narcissistic parents, and

the general consensus amongst experts on such relationships. 

 

Our conversation later delves into whether psychedelics would be able to attain ego dissolution for people with narcissistic personality disorders, as well as how intimate partners psychologically and emotionally suffer from an ever-shifting reality.

 

Finally, Dr Karenne Hills leaves us with sound advice drawn from lived experience and evidence-based research on how to deal with narcissistic partners.

 

To learn more about how to navigate your communication with family members who you suspect have narcissistic personality disorders, visit the podcast link below by Rick Hanson & Forrest Hanson: 

Being Well Podcast: Understanding Narcissism and Narcissistic Traits with Dr. Craig Malkin

https://rickhanson.com/being-well-podcast-understanding-narcissism-and-narcissistic-traits-with-dr-craig-malkin/