Narcissism is a spectrum disorder with
the most severe end of the spectrum considered a narcissistic
personality disorder. A woman can have several narcissistic
traits and not fit the personality disorder. Mothers with
only a few traits listed can negatively affect their daughters
in insidious ways which is explained in Dr. Karyl's
book.
(Check all those that apply to your
relationship with your mother)
Please feel free to print this page
- When you discuss your life issues
with your mother, does she divert the discussion
to talk about herself?
- When you discuss your feelings
with your mother, does she she try to top the feeling
with her own?
- Does your mother act jealous
of you?
- Does your mother lack empathy
for your feelings?
- Does your mother only support
those things you do that reflect on her as a “good
mother”?
- Have you consistently felt a lack
of emotional closeness with your mother?
- Have you consistently questioned
whether or not your mother likes you or loves you?
- Does your mother only do
things for you when others can see?
- When something happens in your
life (accident, illness, divorce), does your mother
react with how it will affect her rather than how you
feel?
- Is or was your mother overly
conscious of what others think (neighbors, friends, family,
co-workers)?
- Does your mother deny
her own feelings?
- Does your mother blame
things on you or others rather than own responsibility
for her own feelings or actions?
- Is or was your mother hurt easily
and then carries a grudge for a long time without resolving
the problem?
- Do you feel you were a
slave to your mother?
- Do you feel you were responsible
for your mother’s ailments or sickness (headaches,
stress, illness)?
- Did you have to take care of
your mother’s physical needs as a child?
- Do you feel unaccepted
by your mother?
- Do you feel your mother
was critical of you?
- Do you feel helpless in
the presence of your mother?
- Are you shamed often
by your mother?
- Do you feel your mother
knows the real you?
- Does your mother act like
the world should revolve around her?
- Do you find it difficult to be
a separate person from your mother?
- Does your mother appear
phony to you?
- Does your mother want
to control your choices?
- Does your mother swing
from egotistical to depressed mood?
- Did you feel you had to
take care of your mother’s emotional needs as a
child?
- Do you feel manipulated
in the presence of your mother?
- Do you feel valued, by
mother, for what you do rather than who you are?
- Is your mother controlling,
acting like a victim or martyr?
- Does your mother make
you act different from how you really feel?
- Does your mother compete with
you?
- Does your mother always
have to have things her way?
Note: All of these questions relate
to narcissistic traits. The more questions you checked,
the more likely your mother has narcissistic traits and
this has caused some difficulty for you as a growing daughter
and adult. If you have checked several questions above,
we would like to invite you to join our discussion board
where you can find support from other daughters raised
by mothers with narcissistic traits.