When examining the inner experiences of individuals high in narcissism, two feelings are frequently discussed yet often confused: narcissistic boredom and narcissistic emptiness. Both can be explained as internal states or feelings that may appear similar on the surface, or to the casual observer. However, they are fundamentally different in how they manifest behaviorally. Narcissistic boredom is defined as a feeling of restlessness, a hypersensitivity to peace or quiet (often explained as a feeling of unease or dread for the mundane), a need for “supply” that leads to actively looking for sources of external validation, and a sense of novelty-seeking behavior.

On the flipside, narcissistic emptiness is defined as a deep void, or an existential feeling of lack. Narcissistic emptiness may be described as a vacuum, a feeling of being hollow or deficient in human feelings that originates from early traumatic experiences where a young child experienced neglect, and a lack of emotional validation and mirroring from their caregivers.1, 2 With narcissistic emptiness, a person may look confident, socially

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