Signs You Are Co-parenting With A Narcissist

Co-parenting after a divorce can be complicated and occasionally difficult even under the best circumstances, co-parenting with a narcissist makes it worse. Indeed, even when parents decide to work together as much as is necessary for the sake of their children when they share child custody, complex issues and schedule changes can arise.

Parents may disagree about how their kids should engage in extracurricular activities, educational opportunities, and even certain friendships. When one parent has a narcissistic personality disorder or even more colloquially bears many of the traits associated with narcissism, co-parenting can become significantly more difficult.

If you have questions about shared child custody and co-parenting, a child custody lawyer in Rockville can speak with you about your concerns. In the meantime, the following are signs you may be co-parenting with a narcissist.

Exhibiting a Sense of Entitlement

Your co-parent might constantly act as though she or he is entitled to any parenting schedule that fits their needs, and may attempt to control your child’s after-school and weekend schedule so that their own needs are met.

Arrogant Behavior and Attitude

According to WebMD, narcissists—meaning people with narcissistic personality disorder—have “a strong sense of grandiosity and self-importance,” and they often believe that they are more important than others around them. One common sign that you are co-parenting with a narcissist is if your ex displays arrogant behavior. For example, your co-parent might ignore your opinion or the opinions of other people entirely, including experts.

Your ex may routinely speak over other people and refuse to accept any kind of feedback. And when your parent does take the advice of someone else, your co-parent might refuse to give credit to that person and may instead credit themselves.

With co-parenting, these arrogant behaviors can show themselves in various ways, such as in educational settings where your co-parent is meeting with your child’s teacher or coach, or in a situation in which your child is working with a family therapist to work through issues from the divorce.

Routinely Taking Advantage of Other People for Their own Benefit

Narcissists routinely take advantage of other people in order to get what they want. In co-parenting situations, your ex might attempt to take advantage of you in order to have a co-parenting schedule that is more preferable to them. Or worse, your ex might take advantage of your child in order to engage in vindictive acts toward you or to gain benefits in their newly single personal lives.

Lacking Empathy Toward Others

Whether your ex displays a lack of empathy toward you, the child you share, or anyone else in your child’s life, you could be co-parenting with a narcissist. Narcissists who lack empathy toward others tend to be extremely critical of other people, to be immune to the feelings of other people in their lives, to behave in ways that are insensitive toward you or your child, and to have an inability to be happy for other people’s successes—whether it is your child’s success in school or the success of a neighbor or colleague.

Seek Advice from a Rockville Child Custody Attorney

If you believe your co-parent is a narcissist, it is important to set boundaries and to stick to them, and limit communication when you can. If you need help ensuring that your co-parent adheres to the child custody arrangement, one of our experienced Rockville child custody lawyers can help. Contact the Law Offices of Sandra Guzman-Salvado today for more information.