About Sam Vaknin, Author of Narcissism Book

So you'd like to know more about me. My name Sam Vaknin. I am a visiting professor of psychology, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia and Professor of Finance and Psychology in CIAPS (Centre for International Advanced and Professional Studies). I'm an author of short stories, a winner of literary awards, and a former columnist in Central Europe Review, eBookWeb.org, PopMatters, and United Press International (UPI). I am also the Editor of mental health categories in the Open Directory and Suite101.

You can learn more about my work and me HERE.

I am not a mental health professional, though I was certified in Counseling Techniques. I work as a financial consultant to leading businesses and to governments in several countries."

My book, Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited, is one of the first books to talk about Narcissistic Personality Disorder, which was just starting to gain recognition.

It was written under extreme conditions of duress. It was composed in jail as I was trying to understand what had hit me. My nine-year marriage dissolved, my finances were in a shocking condition, my family estranged, my reputation ruined, my personal freedom severely curtailed.

I wrote the first draft of the book in prison, by night ...standing. Then I re-wrote my scrambled notes, uploaded them and, presto- there was a website. The book came much later when I realized the pent-up pain and solitude that narcissism wreaks upon its sufferers and victims. It is a pernicious condition, the root of many mental health disorders, and very poorly understood, diagnosed, reported, and studied. It was recognized as a mental health category only in 1980 (DSM III).

Why did I go to prison in the first place? I crossed swords with the Israeli government. Mine was shorter. I was imprisoned for grand fraud after I exposed major corruption in a bank I bought through the stock exchange. But isn't this ("I'm not guilty!") what they all say?

Slowly, the realization that it was all my fault, that I was sick and needed help penetrated the decade's old defenses that I erected around me. This book is the documentation of a road of self-discovery. It was a painful process, which led to nowhere. I am no different - and no healthier - today than I was when I wrote this book. My disorder is here to stay, the prognosis is poor and alarming.

My book says that narcissists are easily identifiable and that, once identified, can be easily manipulated. The need to manipulate them arises out of their propensity to destroy everything and everyone around them. To manipulate a narcissist is to survive. It is a survival tactic for the victims of narcissists.

You can get a quick overview of narcissism and Narcissistic Personality Disorder from reading these chats and interviews

next: Shmuel (Sam) VAKNIN CURRICULUM VITAE