Narcissistic Supply: Weird things Covert Narcissists do to Feed Their Egos

A narcissist’s need for affirmation and admiration is like fuel for their ego, and narcissistic supply is the fuel that keeps it going. To sustain their inflated feeling of self-importance and entitlement, narcissists engage in a type of psychological addiction known as narcissistic supply, in which they seek out and expect an endless stream of positive reinforcement. For those who have narcissistic personality disorder (NPD), narcissistic supply is a coping mechanism that helps them navigate and even thrive in their environment.

No matter whether it is favourable or bad, attention-seeking conduct is fundamentally a form of narcissistic supply. It is not necessarily egotistical to desire praise, admiration, and approval. Narcissists, unlike the rest of us, have an innate need to be validated and heard at all times. In an effort to mask their narcissistic sadness, these people may actively seek out or fabricate circumstances where they are perpetually the focus of attention. It doesn’t matter how much affirmation a narcissist receives; it will never satisfy them.

Narcissists prey on the innocent and foolish because they are so susceptible to their charms and manipulation. Manipulation is the most common weird thing covert narcissists do to feed their egos. Soon after receiving the supply, the narcissist will feel depleted and will continue to need more. When a narcissist doesn’t receive what they want, it can lead to narcissistic anger. It’s like attempting to fill an endless pit.

Sydney, Australia-based professional psychologist and relationship counsellor Dan Auerbach claims that narcissists are masters at isolating those who would give them the validation they need. The weird thing covert narcissists do to stabilize their fragile sense of self-worth is always seeking attention. Their self-perception is shaped by their early experiences, such as receiving excessive praise or criticism, which in turn causes them to feel this need. This weak self-image drives their incessant need for acceptance from others. Whether it’s favourable or bad, the attention they get serves to reinforce their self-inflated beliefs.

They are able to maintain their sense of superiority because it serves as reinforcement. Their inflated sense of self-importance influences their behaviour, thoughts, and interactions with others as their level of attention increases. This need for attention heavily influences their identity. According to Ayya Khema, having faith is necessary on the path to discovering one’s own truth, but for narcissists, finding their own truth is frequently entangled with seeking approval from others.

Weird things covert narcissists do to satisfy their egos are the following:

1.Wearing Designer Labels

Wearing pricey designer apparel and accessories is a weird things covert narcissists do to satisfy their need for external validation and to feed their egos. When people buy expensive things, it’s usually because they want to show off their wealth, social position, or good taste. One important form of narcissistic feeding is the outward approval they get when other people like their belongings. They feel good about themselves because of the attention and praise, which feeds their ego and makes them believe they are special.

2.Dominance or Control Over Other People

When it comes to controlling and dominating the people around them, covert narcissists are master manipulators. They control others by appealing to their emotions, using subtle forms of coercion, or playing mind games. They use this control to boost their ego by making them feel important and powerful.

Constant narcissistic supply is provided by the capacity to exert control over others and command their compliance. It confirms their notion that they are better than others, which boosts their already self-esteem. It feeds their ego to be able to guide and impact other people. The weird things covert narcissists do of exerting control over others makes them feel even more important.

3.Intimidation

Intimidation is common among the weird things covert narcissists do to feed their egos. Many people, particularly covert narcissists, resort to intimidating others in order to gain control over them. One way that covert narcissists satisfy their need for narcissistic supply is by using intimidation as a tool to impose control and authority over others. The goal is to influence the actions and reactions of the targeted individuals by making them feel threatened or uneasy.

4.Being Intentionally Negative

Covert narcissists may fuel their egos by purposefully being negative, critical, or pessimistic all the time. They make other people feel pressured to comfort or support them by exuding an atmosphere of negativity. The weird things covert narcissists do in this context is intentionally being negative to get the attention and approval of the people around them. Narcissists get a boost to their self-esteem if other people try to “fix” their issues or console them.

5.Using Addictive Substances

The most risky, weird things covert narcissists do to feed their egos is the use of addictive substances. Substance misuse can worsen the symptoms of NPD, which include an inflated perception of self-importance and an even more profound insensitivity to the feelings of those around the abuser. Narcissism and addiction often feed each other in a dangerous circle, making the relationship between them very complicated.

When narcissism is combined with substance abuse, it becomes far more detrimental to relationships, professions, and quality of life in general. Many narcissists struggle with both mental illness and substance abuse. The narcissist’s need to feel superior to others is satiated by drug abuse, which gives the narcissist a false sense of superiority. The temporary thrills help them avoid other problems, like trauma.

6.Receiving Constant Attention

Praise and appreciation are the means by which narcissists acquire the feeling of emotional stability that they have not been able to get in the past. Accumulating these accolades serves to satisfy their vanity and strengthen their ego. Additionally, admiration demonstrates to the world that they are loved and accepted while concealing their narcissistic tendencies.

They want attention because they didn’t get it as children. Narcissists look for people who can give them what they need when they are lacking something, like children who seek comfort from others when they’re hungry. They are seeking to be noticed.

They want someone to tell them certain things over and over again. Someone should provide them their time, empathy, patience, kindness, compassion, and all the other good qualities that people have. In the end, narcissists will resort to any means necessary to achieve their goals. The reason for this is a tremendous desire that they lacked when they were younger but now desperately want it as adults. They are experts at that. This desire serves as a reflection of their inflated sense of superiority and also as a defense mechanism for their bloated ego.

7.Being Aggressive

Narcissists employ aggressiveness as a means of feeding their narcissistic supply despite the fact that anger by itself is not an aberrant reaction to harm or humiliation. Narcissistic individuals may harm others aggressively and, in extreme cases, violently due to their sense of superiority and entitlement, according to the research.

Individuals with a high narcissism level think they are unique and deserving of special care. By appeasing a narcissist while they’re furious, you’re only giving them more of what they want: attention. Because they are getting a response to their actions, narcissists are motivated to keep hurting others when they start an argument.

8.Exploiting Others

Weird things covert narcissists do commonly include exploiting others. Narcissists are dependent on a steady stream of supplies in order to maintain their sense of self-importance. Where it comes from doesn’t matter to them. A continual source of narcissistic supply may be ensured by narcissists by their incredible capacity to manipulate and exploit others around them.

The majority of narcissists are manipulators rather than empaths. Narcissists exert control over others by means of manipulation, charisma, or the ability to persuade them to concede to unreasonable, one-sided demands or to abandon their boundaries. The narcissist sees this as a victory and a means to satisfy their ego.

9.Feeding Off of Other’s Emotional Energy

There are times when a narcissist will use someone’s happiness to put them down. The narcissist sees sadness as a chance to control or hurt the other person. The goal of a narcissist’s manipulation of another person’s feelings is to bring the focus back to the narcissist.

How to Avoid Being a Narcissistic Supply

Even though your narcissist has strong self-esteem, there are ways to avoid exploitation . And becoming a source of self-centeredness if you find yourself in that situation. The initial stage is to acknowledge that your emotions are legitimate and deserving of attention.

Narcissists will go to extreme lengths to avoid acknowledging or accepting their own or anybody else’s emotions. They may feel threatened when another person (or group) expresses admiration or interest in their partner, as it challenges their sense of superiority or position in life; as a result, they may respond with hostility or aggression.

Second, if someone is trying to manipulate you by their actions, seeking professional therapy might help them feel less powerful. To clarify, this does not imply ending a toxic relationship. Rather, it suggests navigating the situation in a way that satisfies all sides until a new plan is agreed upon.

Final Thoughts

One of the most common and problematic personality disorders is narcissism. Weird things covert narcissists do not only have negative effects on other people, but they also feed on themselves. Narcissists typically look for people who will give them approval in order to feel good about themselves. When these people start to feed the narcissist’s ego, the relationships break down and become harmful to everyone.

The purpose of this article was to discuss the various ways narcissists can feed their egos from another person’s Narcissistic Supply. If you have ever been in an abusive relationship in which one partner not only fails to do anything positive for themselves .But also sabotages every effort their partner makes toward growth or self-improvement.So it is better to distance from themselves to get a peace of mind and it will also stop yourself from feeding narcissistic ego.

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Hi, I’m Ashra Abdulrazzaq (Doing MS in Clinical Psychology). I am a professional psychologist and author whose published articles on many recognized websites. I love unwrapping the mysteries of the human minds and then utilizing this knowledge to heal them