I have always struggled with self-esteem, especially when it comes to RSD. To cope, I’ve found that repeating certain positive affirmations like “I can do anything,” “I’m awesome,” etc. helps me feel more confident in myself. It’s not about being arrogant, but more like a mental trick to push through my insecurities and feel better in the moment.
The thing is, some people around me are starting to accuse me of being a narcissist because of it. I’ll admit, part of me does enjoy the attention that comes with these affirmations, and for a while, I just leaned into it. But now it feels like it’s spiraling a bit out of control. I’m wondering if I’ve crossed some line between self-empowerment and self-centeredness.
I don’t want to seem arrogant or like I’m trying to manipulate anyone, but I really don’t know how else to keep my confidence up. Has anyone else experienced this? How do you manage the fine line between boosting your self-esteem and coming off as narcissistic, especially when dealing with ADHD or autism?
I think it might be on the same spectrum as “narcissism”, maybe similar underlying psychological mechanisms, but I think there’s a line that narcissism crosses when it’s to the point of ignoring/degrading everyone else around you. For you, it sounds like it’s more about boosting your own self-confidence, not excluding or disregarding others and putting your own self first, like if you were to start putting other people down just to boost your own self-confidence. I think narcissists may have the same sort of self-confidence issue, but how they go about pumping themselves up is what makes them toxic personalities.
Based on what you’ve described though, it doesn’t sound like that’s what you’re doing. It may come across as arrogant to others, and I think that’s what they’re conflating with narcissism.