Image: Witch Lantern. Lloyd Charles Lemcke. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington. In the field of social work, there is an emphasis on using person-first language. For example, saying "person who has autism," instead of "autistic," puts the person before their diagnosis or disability. The purpose is to reduce stigma and dehumanizing language. There is a great resource here.
Since this blog is relatively new, I find myself grappling with language and terminology. If you are here, then you are likely aware that there is a multitude of content creators who are focused on the topic of narcissism and narcissistic abuse. How often is person-first language used in this context? I have not noticed it frequently. However, a quick search for tags on the topic through social media outlets will find that there are also a lot of upset people who are diagnosed with Narcissistic Personality Disorder that are attempting to get help, but are having issues due to stigma. Try #actually NPD, and you will see what I mean. I saw a suggestion to use "emotional abuse," instead of "narcissistic abuse." And to say, "abuser," instead of "narcissist." If we are going to use person-first language and avoid stigmatizing labels, would it be best to say "person who emotionally abuses others?" I think I would be generally be okay with that, it's just that narcissistic abuse is so specific, and so oddly similar across different situations, that leaving out the term misses something that could help someone figure out what is going on. On the other hand, it could be applied to other terms, such as saying "person who is scapegoated (or targeted, excessively blamed, etc.) by their family," or "child who was treated with favoritism and idealized." While it lacks brevity and ease of usage, it redeems itself by bringing back the person and removing the harmful label. This can even be healing when it comes to reclaiming identity after emotional abuse.
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AuthorI am an artist and a social worker. Disclaimer: The ideas on this site are not meant to replace clinical care. If you are having a mental health emergency, please call 911 or your local Crisis Services provider. ArchivesCategories |