Well said. Great write and I can totally relate having been on the other side of the Narcissists mental games of hide and seek. Manipulation at the very best. I love the style, it grabs the reader and allows you to feel as you move through the poem. Nice job!
It's an autobiographical poem.... I apologize on behalf of all the horrible narcissists you've enco.. read moreIt's an autobiographical poem.... I apologize on behalf of all the horrible narcissists you've encountered. They are a good time from time to time though, in small doses. A little bit goes a long way.
8 Years Ago
1 was enough. I'm sure I have encountered more in the world but living with 1 was plenty. I am fre.. read more1 was enough. I'm sure I have encountered more in the world but living with 1 was plenty. I am free of the craziness! I will read more of your poetry, I do like your style :)
3 Years Ago
Oh dear - two science nerds - and me - too funny 😂
While reading very keen words it unfolds powerful emotions for example line "Distorted fully to experience zero reality." That line got me for some reason but keep writing Sincerely your friend in writing and life.
whew, really brought suppressed thoughts to the foreground. I've known this kind of person... had the most beautiful smile I had ever seen, and she used it as a dagger and band aid. Ah, the times when self destruction felt right. Believe it or not, many of us cling to this, masochistically of course. After all, attention is attention. Even when you know its only given for selfish benefit. Powerful write.
Posted 4 Years Ago
1 of 1 people found this review constructive.
4 Years Ago
Attention is a strange thing. No one really interprets it right. I wrote this about 5 years ago an.. read moreAttention is a strange thing. No one really interprets it right. I wrote this about 5 years ago and I haven't gotten better at writing things. I think maybe the point is... mind and body strong grasshopper.
A devastating portrait here of a self destructive personality type. Although the drug factor is mentioned in passing at the end, it is the narcissism that is most important. There is a healthy narcissism and a malignant type, and what is described here is definitely the latter. The narcissistic personality disorder individual really has poor self esteem and spends much of the time trying to shore it by manipulating others. The poet accurately calls it "self loathing's self love." Others exist only as means to an end. Those close to them, especially those who do not understand what they are dealing with, are put through the wringer until they catch on. Then they have a choice: either get the person help or run for their lives.
Posted 5 Years Ago
1 of 1 people found this review constructive.
5 Years Ago
That sounds about right to me. It's like you almost used to deal with people like this for a living.. read moreThat sounds about right to me. It's like you almost used to deal with people like this for a living or something crazy like that.
Thanks for stopping by John.
5 Years Ago
You're welcome. I was a mental health crisis counselor for four years.
Losing sight of the Self to the masks we wear
One mask seeking out and attacking another in the chaos
A forgotten land unseen where the forgotten rot
Only in the darkness do we find ourselves
As the masks fall away we can learn to see
We are not as we seem, bundles of the past
Tied ever so tight to our faces
We look into the mirror and see ourselves
Our masks tied so tight
We see the past and mistake it for ourselves
We forget how to move and shift
That we can take off and put on our masks at will
We are not our masks, but we have forgotten
Know now, we do
We are our masks
It is not until we forget ourselves
That we might let go of our masks
Sometimes we turn to bliss to forget
Other times dysphoria drives us to let go
We use our tools called drugs to forget
Because it reminds us who we were all along
When we untie our masks and become nothing
We soon discover we are everything
I create the review as a poem them post it into my feed. The poem was inspired by your piece. Got it.. read moreI create the review as a poem them post it into my feed. The poem was inspired by your piece. Got it backwards ;)
5 Years Ago
It helps me track what I write if I post it to the feed otherwise it's lost to comments. I don't rea.. read moreIt helps me track what I write if I post it to the feed otherwise it's lost to comments. I don't really post the poems I write for others to read so much as to aggregate them in one place.
I am glad I read this. It is well thought out and although I don't know anything about psychology or the labels psychologists use (narcopath, narcissist etc.) the poem seems to cover most people during at least some points in a lifetime. The best poems do that, show some aspect of humanity I mean. This poem takes the specific malaise that might trouble one individual and translates it into the general ache that sooner or later afflicts us all. I think this is an outstanding piece of writing.
Posted 6 Years Ago
1 of 1 people found this review constructive.
5 Years Ago
Thanks Delmar. I have a love/hate relationship with this particular piece. On one hand I do think .. read moreThanks Delmar. I have a love/hate relationship with this particular piece. On one hand I do think it's a genuine articulation of the human condition, but on the other I hate that it comes from my own behavior/self description. Eh, the first step to self refinement is self realization I guess. Unfortunately it's been a couple years since I wrote this and I'm still kind of a piece of s**t.
What a great poem! In high school there are sooooo many of these narcissists crying fake tears for sympathy. Attention lovers and mirror carriers. It's annoying after a while, it's like no ones real anymore. Great write! I enjoyed it! :)
Posted 6 Years Ago
1 of 1 people found this review constructive.
6 Years Ago
Everybody has a fake front stage persona... but some people who also lack genuine empathy take it a .. read moreEverybody has a fake front stage persona... but some people who also lack genuine empathy take it a little too far, get a little too manipulative, become a little too untethered from reality, and don't really care about other people beyond what they mean to themselves. Social media has allowed the current generation to take it in a new direction with a massively gullible audience.
6 Years Ago
i totally agree with that! social media has allowed us to put on a mask and pretend to be what we're.. read morei totally agree with that! social media has allowed us to put on a mask and pretend to be what we're not
I truly understand how Narcissists plays the head games. I like your writing very much, thank you for sharing your talents with all of us on this page.