Narcissists and Empaths are not born that way…they are moulded by the experiences around them and how they choose to deal with it dependent on their basic innate character traits.
In the same household one child can turn into a Narcissist and the other an Empath…depending on how they process trauma.
EVERYONE goes through trauma of one kind or another…it need not be something catastrophic.
And not EVERYONE is an Empath or a Narcissist.
The Empath will internalize everything and the Narcissist will externalize everything.
The Empath puts the burden of blame on themselves…the Narcissist will ALWAYS lay the blame on others.
The Narcissist is essentially an Empath ‘gone bad’ because of how they choose to deal with the same type of trauma the empath was exposed to. They too are very perceptive but use that quality in a dysfunctional manner by manipulating others.
One is not better than the other.
Both have unhealthy coping mechanisms.
They both have to learn to process the same emotions in a healthy manner.
Being an Empath is not the greatest designation…because it comes with a lot of life long tolerances that are detrimental to their survival.
Unless you are a self aware Empath.
Narcissists will take from whoever is willing to give.
Ironically…Narcissists will spend their whole lives preying on Empaths for their empathetic qualities because that is what they lack in themselves.
They need what you got!
That’s the only way they can survive in the world…by syphoning energy from others.
Ideally an Empath is the ‘best’ match for their requirements.
It’s the most bang for their buck.
It’s a perfect match made in Hell…one is a total giver and the other a total taker.
A self aware Empath can be a super good quality if they are aware of their limitations and learn to balance out their light and shadow sides with very strong boundaries so that people who have the propensity to abuse them are unable to.
EVERYONE loves a kind person but not everyone deserves our kind.
The Empath has a better chance at balancing emotional health because they will find out that how they handle things does not work for them later on in life.
A Narcissist on the other hand does not have a good chance of balance because their dysfunction actually works perfectly well for them…they take what they need from others by manipulation.
Boundaries Boundaries Boundaries!!!
Remember ‘The Wall’…the world’s most notorious Narcissist wanted to build?
Just like that…build strong boundaries to protect yourself from people just like him.
