I’ve learned more about covert narcissism from your comment than I have from the last 20 articles I’ve read on the subject. I appreciate your self-awareness and frankness. You bring a perspective that eclipses the dry textbook reiterations of this disorder and the tacit otherization of those who have it.

Everyone would be better served if we quit seeking red flags to armchair diagnose others, and focused instead on how we’re allowing people to treat us. It is useless to identify covert narcissism if we’re not enforcing our own boundaries.

Might you be better off too if the people in your life set firmer boundaries with you?