How Parental Narcissism Affects Maryland Child Custody Issues

 Posted on June 11, 2025 in Child Custody

Almost all people have narcissistic traits. Healthy adults can benefit from a normal amount of narcissism that allows them to take pride in their accomplishments. Most teenagers display narcissistic traits, which are considered a normal part of development and growth. Narcissistic personality disorder is not the same as having a few narcissistic traits; about one in 200 people has narcissistic personality disorder, and about 75 percent of those are men.

There is no hard evidence regarding the causes of NPD, although some theories include a combination of genetic predispositions and early childhood experiences like being raised by parents who lack empathy and/or provide excessive praise. An overly sensitive temperament is usually present at birth and can be an indicator of a narcissistic personality later on. While divorce seems to bring out the worst in many people, for those married to a narcissist, a divorce can feel like pure torture.

Not only may the division of marital assets and determination of spousal support take months and months, but if the couple has children, the custody and visitation determinations are likely to be drawn out even more. They may involve the narcissistic parent’s attempts to discredit the other parent while extolling his or her own parental virtues with little regard for how this affects the child. It is important that your Prince George’s County, MD family law attorney is aware of your spouse’s narcissistic tendencies before the divorce begins, so he or she can anticipate the behavior and have countermeasures ready.

What Are the Most Common Traits of a Person with Narcissistic Personality Disorder?

While every narcissistic person may not have every trait associated with NPD, they will have at least some of them, including:

• An overly large sense of self-importance that involves bragging about or exaggerating achievements.
• The belief that they have or deserve power, success, money, love, beauty, and intelligence.
• The belief that they are superior, special, or unique and should only associate with those deemed "worthy."
• A constant need for admiration, along with a preoccupation with knowing what others think, and fragile self-esteem. The narcissist often "fishes" for compliments from others.
• A sense of entitlement, resulting in expectations of favorable treatment and unreasonable anger when others fail to cater to them.
• A willingness to consciously or unconsciously exploit and use others, including deliberately taking advantage of friends, family members, and co-workers for self-serving reasons.
• A lack of empathy causes them to say hurtful things to others while they fail to return kindness or interest shown by others.

How Will Narcissism Affect Child Custody?

The narcissistic parent will pursue parental rights as a means of creating a power disparity between himself or herself and the other parent. Narcissistic parents want primary custody for their own gratification rather than for the child’s best interests. The narcissistic parent will never "play by the rules" and is likely to gaslight the other parent continuously.

This means they engage in manipulation designed to make the other parent believe he or she is unstable, crazy, or irrational. These tactics work well in isolation, which is why most narcissists will attempt to isolate their spouse from friends and family. The tactics are less effective in a custody battle because more people are likely to witness the behavior.

When the narcissistic parent is called on his or her tactics, they will deny they did anything wrong and immediately attack the other parent, making themselves the "victim." The non-narcissistic parent should document everything, gather witnesses who can testify as to the narcissistic parent’s true nature, hire a skilled attorney, and consider requesting a child custody evaluation.   

Contact a Montgomery County, MD Child Custody Attorney

If you are facing a divorce that includes child custody and your spouse is a narcissist, you need assistance from an experienced Bethesda, MD child custody lawyer from Diamant Gerstein, LLC who has dealt with NPD before and understands the many ways it can derail the progress of a divorce. Our attorneys are very hands-on and are lifetime residents of Montgomery County. We answer our calls personally and work aggressively on behalf of our clients. To schedule an initial attorney meeting, call 301-560-2685. Se Habla Español. אנחנו מדברים עברית.