NEWBIES...PENDING UPDATES TO THE DSM IV/NARCISSISM

Below is an article which explains the pending changes currently being discussed by the APA for revision to the DSM-IV as it pertains to Narcissism.

What is important to note is that curently, there is criteria for this particular Personality Disorder; however it has been found that there is a lot of co-morbidity (symptoms overlapping with other Personality Disorders) and for that reason, the APA believes that classifying it in a general category with other's may help them to better diagnose.

In the interim, I am not sure where that leaves US the victims, or whether or not how they classify it really matters as ultimately, the bottom line is the same, WE ARE VICTIMS and have been harmed.

This is to supplement what you may already know about PDs specifically Narcissism although I don't think it would be unfair to say that aquainting yourself with the other PD's would not be helpful as well simply because they are for the most part equally harmful and the after effets to us the VICTIMS pretty much boils down to the same thing regardless of what you believe the abuser suffers from.

The fact that the APA does not feel they have a firm enough theory or course of treatment for these individuals, and have concluded they are hopeless cases to me is cause for alarm as if they professionals do not fully understand the perpetrators and wish to wash their hands with them and write them off - then how well can they understand us the victims.

If something is not funded or researched, then there is a minimal understanding - if the APA believes they are lost causes, then there won't be much research - why put money into a lost cause?

It is for that reason amongst others, it is imperative you do a lot of research, as in this journey, you will also have to learn how to become your own best advocate and healer whether you are in therapy or not.

Hugs!

http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/02/narcissism-dsm.aspx

Narcissism and the DSM
By: S. Dingfelder

February 2011, Vol 42, No. 2
Print version: page 67

Narcissistic Personality Disorder may not make it into the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), due out in 2013. A proposed revision of the DSM would replace the disorder with a measure of impairment in personality functioning and a list of pathological personality traits that clinicians could choose from when diagnosing a client with a personality disorder.
The change would allow clinicians to put a finer point on diagnosis and may allow researchers to get closer to the underpinnings of personality dysfunction, says Andrew E. Skodol, MD, chair of the DSM-5’s personality disorder work group and a psychiatry professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.
“There is a fair amount of literature suggesting that narcissism is a dimension varying amongst people and across disorders,” he says, “not necessarily a disorder in and of itself.”
But not all psychologists agree with that assessment. One dissenter is Thomas Arthur Widiger, PhD, a University of Kentucky psychology professor who served on the DSM-5’s research planning committee who says the decision wasn’t based on a systematic or objective review of the data and, if implemented, would have a chilling effect on personality disorder research.
“By turning narcissistic personality disorder into a list of traits that will lack official coding within a medical record, you are essentially relegating it to a sidebar that will unlikely draw much research or diagnostic interest,” Widiger says.
The change could also stymie the development of new treatments, says Lynn F. Bufka, PhD, assistant executive director for practice research and policy in APA’s Practice Directorate.
“If narcissistic personality disorder is no longer considered to be a diagnosis, we may not see as many interventions put forward for treating it,” she says.
The verdict on NPD is far from final, Skodol says. “The proposed changes are currently being tested in field trials around the country, and nothing is set in stone,” he says.