Anger is something we all experience. We feel it when people hurt us or when we are disappointed, but there are different degrees of anger.

Nowadays, the ubiquitous nature of social media has only made it worse and has encouraged and fuelled the growth of narcissism in the world.

It can always happen that you fall victim to narcissistic rage and you don’t know if someone is struggling with narcissistic rage until it’s too late and they’ve already moved on.

What is narcissistic rage?

Narcissistic anger is a type of anger that is fueled by narcissism. It is intense and painful because it comes from feeling that your dignity, success or love has been threatened. This can come from anyone: a friend who makes you feel small, a family member who criticizes you for being incompetent, or even your own self-critical thoughts.

The term “narcissism” was coined by a psychologist called Heinz Kohut in the early 20th century. Narcissism is characterised by self-admiration, vanity, excess and superficiality. Narcissistic rage is a reaction to a perceived threat to the narcissist’s self-esteem or ego. This threatens the narcissist’s feelings of perfection, superiority and entitlement.

Narcissistic rage was first studied in the late 1970s by psychoanalyst Otto Kernberg, who postulated that narcissistic rage results from an inability to tolerate what he called “devaluation”. In other words, narcissistic rage is an emotional response to real or imagined threats that result in this type of person feeling weakened, diminished, humiliated and rejected.

The narcissistic person often feels powerless and believes he or she is being disregarded by others. This impulse to lash out can be difficult to control, and if the individual is not fully aware of the consequences of their actions, they may decide to lash out in destructive ways.

When someone feels anger because of a narcissistic wound, they will often experience the following symptoms:

• menacing body language (chest forward, head thrown back, stiff body posture)
• feels entitled to preferential treatment because they are so much cooler and better than everyone else
• feelings of superiority and grandiosity
• inability to empathise with others or understand their perspective

Narcissistic rage is a very strong expression of anger in response to perceived humiliation. It is a response to narcissistic hurt.

It is often seen in individuals with malignant narcissistic personality disorder or in people with antisocial personality disorder.

Narcissistic injury occurs when things happen to the narcissist that threaten their egocentric worldview and sense of self-esteem and superiority. So it generally occurs as a result of some kind of perceived insult or threat to the individual’s self-esteem and usually has little to do with the other person.

Narcissistic anger can be expressed as verbal attacks or violence.

Healthy anger is anger that stems from feeling that someone has been wronged by another person. It is a justified and appropriate response to feeling hurt, attacked or threatened in some way.

But the narcissist feels humiliated when it doesn’t go their way, i.e. the other person doesn’t do or say exactly what they want them to do or say.

Narcissistic anger is often confused with assertiveness, but they are not the same thing. It’s a type of anger that doesn’t recognize or consider the needs or thoughts of the other person.

Narcissistic anger can lead to aggressive behaviour and more quickly than other types of anger. The person falls into a cycle of self-centeredness in which they attack indiscriminately without considering how their words will affect the other person’s feelings, thoughts, etc.

What causes narcissistic anger?

Narcissistic anger stems from low self-esteem and the need for others to give the narcissist credit for the special merits he or she believes he or she has. People who are narcissistic usually do not receive this validation, and this causes them to retaliate when they feel their needs are not being met.

Narcissists often feel wronged because they believe they deserve special treatment from others. This is seen in their indignation at negative feedback or criticism from others.

Narcissism is a personality disorder that can affect anyone. It has been said to be a defence against shame in early life.

Narcissistic anger can be a conditioned response, often being ‘taught’ by parents or carers as a form of punishment.

Narcissistic anger manifests in a variety of ways, often involving people who feel unappreciated, frustrated and dissatisfied with their circumstances. It can be difficult to manage and is sometimes directed at specific people to give the narcissist some sense of power over them.

The causes of narcissism are due to a combination of factors. These include:

• abuse in early childhood
• trauma (e.g. childhood abandonment)
• parental neglect or criticism
• excessive childhood praise for various achievements

Narcissists feel unable to get over living in a place where everything doesn’t revolve around them.

Narcissistic anger and the harmful effects it leaves behind

Narcissistic anger is a powerful negative emotion that is often experienced by a narcissist who feels unappreciated and insulted. This can cause them to become angry and lash out at people they feel are wronging them.

One way people can overcome narcissistic anger is to reflect on their reactions to other people’s behaviour when they experience narcissistic anger. If we find that our reactions become overly exaggerated or excessively negative, then it may be time to take a step back and instead confront what we are feeling inside so that we don’t engage in unhealthy behaviors like narcissistic anger.

Narcissistic anger has many harmful effects. It can make people feel inferior, lonely, anxious and even suicidal when caught in its grip.

Research suggests that narcissistic anger is the result of uncontrolled anger, an inability to understand and manage one’s own emotions, and an inability to tolerate emotional pain.

The effects of narcissistic anger are far-reaching. They leave deep emotional scars on the soul of those who experience this anger first hand, but can also be felt by society at large when such people are placed in positions of power.

Narcissistic anger often destroys relationships because it leaves lasting emotional wounds on others. It also leads to conflict within families and organisations because people with this condition feel that their needs are more important than others.

Narcissistic rage in today’s society and the dangers of a wider crisis

Narcissistic anger can be as damaging as any other kind of anger. It is often seen as a sign of mental illness or the result of abuse. The problem is that it’s more than an emotion – it’s a powerful impulse that can lead to physical violence and even murder.

Narcissistic rage is caused by the frustration of unmet expectations, which are demands the person has placed on themselves and others. These unmet expectations can be anything from a promotion at work or academic achievement, to a loved one not meeting their needs.

Some narcissists attack others verbally, others cause property damage, and some go so far as to commit violence against themselves or others to release pent-up anger. This anger is rarely expressed explicitly and instead is expressed indirectly through controlling behavior or sabotaging relationships.

There are many dangers of narcissistic anger becoming a larger scale crisis. One way this could happen is if narcissistic anger becomes contagious, which could lead to an increasingly toxic workplace culture in which each individual expresses themselves violently whenever their demands are not met.

Narcissistic rage may be on the rise with today’s high rates of narcissism in society, in addition to increased exposure to social media, which can escalate anger or shame with every post or like.

The dangers in today’s society are serious if we don’t change the way we deal with narcissistic anger. A crisis on a larger scale could be caused by people’s inability to withstand the onslaught of a narcissistic rage.

How do you recognise and control your own anger before it becomes uncontrollable?

Anger can be the most destructive of all emotions and one that is difficult to control. It can come from external sources or be created by us through our own thought patterns.

Anger is a perfectly natural emotion and can be felt in a whole range of situations. However, it can easily get out of control.

To recognise narcissistic anger in our lives, we need to look for the following red flags:

• you feel entitled to get everything from others
• even when you do get everything, it feels like it’s not enough
• you often feel offended by a trivial remark from someone
• you don’t apologise or forgive an offence
• when you feel angry, it makes you very agitated and irritable

Conclusion: why it is important to understand and address the danger of narcissistic anger in yourself or among loved ones

Toxic narcissistic behavior like narcissistic anger stems from that person’s desire for control and power.

As a result, whenever you do something that that person feels could jeopardize their power or control, that person will react as if you are directly attacking them.

It is important to understand what narcissistic anger is and the danger it poses. A narcissist experiences anger when denied a desired object or goal. Anger can be triggered by anything, but it is not always a rational response. It could be caused by something as small as someone asking a question he didn’t like or as big as being rejected for a promotion.

The first thing to understand about narcissistic anger is that it’s not normal anger. Narcissistic anger is intense and sudden, and the person has no control over it. People who experience this type of anger are absolutely unable to see any other perspective except their own “truth” in the world. They often feel entitled to get what they want, regardless of the limitations or rights of others.

Narcissistic rage is like a vicious circle. It starts with an insult. The natural reaction of the insulted person is to insult back, but this only fuels the anger of the other person. Narcissists often react with aggression, blaming the person for provoking them. They may also go on the offensive, attacking in retaliation. The escalating nature of narcissism can fuel more and more aggression until it reaches an explosive breaking point.

People with narcissistic tendencies often alternate between two extremes, especially when they feel their self-esteem has been threatened. They might start an argument, then apologise and turn the attention back on themselves. When narcissists feel afraid or misunderstood, they may lash out and become defensive. This is why their family members stop trying to talk to them.

Narcissists isolate their partners because they are unable to maintain a healthy relationship.

The narcissist’s isolating behaviour is one of the most significant symptoms of this personality disorder. This can occur as a result of their own self-centeredness and need for validation. It can also happen because they are afraid of others who might criticize them or diminish their grandiose perception of themselves.

This isolation is not just physical. The narcissist will also isolate themselves socially, alienating friends and family members they once cared about.

Isolation is often seen in cases of extreme narcissistic relationships. For example, the inability to put their partner’s needs before their own due to lack of empathy can cause the narcissistic person to become increasingly isolated from society. This is just one of the many ways narcissists isolate their partners.

These people are unable to maintain healthy relationships because they focus only on themselves and have no empathy for others. They become more and more isolated from society as time goes on, which causes them even more mental distress because they have no one around to talk to or share their time with. “They are not able to understand the point of having friends or getting along with other people because they are too caught up in their own problems and how they feel.”

For all these reasons, it’s important to understand the nature of narcissistic anger and how destructive it can be for the person feeling it, as well as for others around them.