The Narcissistic Wound

The injury to the self, caused by critical, abusive, judgmental or narcissistic parents is called a narcissistic wound. When a child is wounded they will often opt for the false self and pseudo personality, they will be left with a wound that and look to defend against having re-injured. In adulthood, this wounded individual's wounds will get tripped up and activated when in similar situations that are reminiscent of the original wounding experiences. When this is the case, the wounded individual will fly into a rage and look to punish, humiliate, shame, and injure those who dare cause this offense. Victims will describe walking on eggshells around their abuser in order to avoid this wound. In order to protect oneself from taking on the narcissist's wounds and projections, it is vital to not react and understand that the rage and shame that the narcissist feels has nothing to do with you. In addition, it is vital to healing any personal wounds that are keeping you in relationships that are exploitive and narcissistic.