The Facebook Narcissist by Lena Derhally

Author:Lena Derhally
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Health Communications Inc
Published: 2022-05-30T00:00:00+00:00

ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP RUPTURES AND NARCISSISM ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Grace and Gary: Red Flag Warning

When Grace, a pretty, single thirty-two-year-old met Gary out at a bar one night on a business trip out of town, she did not think much of it when he found her and friended her on Facebook the next day. Although his Facebook profile revealed that he had friends, most of his posts—what few there existed—were pictures of him solo.

Grace and Gary were soon messaging constantly through Facebook. He was incredibly charming and flattering—he commented and liked all her pictures and showered her with compliments, telling her how beautiful she was. He made his intentions crystal clear: he felt lucky he had found a woman like Grace and wanted to pursue a long-distance relationship with her. Soon, Grace started receiving flowers and extravagant gifts from Gary, even a designer purse that was worth several thousand dollars. How was I so lucky to find a man like this? Grace thought.

It had been months since they saw each other in person after that first meeting at the bar, but Grace was falling hard for Gary. She had never known a man who was so invested in her and her happiness before. He put her on a pedestal and treated her like a goddess—what more could she want?

Eventually, Gary was able to visit her on a weekend trip, and the two days and nights they had together exceeded all her romantic expectations. He even talked about engagement, marriage, and having kids. Grace was crazy about her nieces and nephews and had always wanted to be a mother. She thought, For the first time in my life, everything is falling into place. My dreams of a man to love me forever are coming true.

There was one peculiar incident during that weekend, but Grace was so intoxicated by the intense feelings of romance that she shrugged it off. Grace and Gary had taken a selfie together out at a restaurant, and Grace had posted it on her Facebook page, tagging Gary in it. With all the talk about the future, Grace was excited to share her status as “in a relationship” and to introduce her new beau online to all her friends.

Gary got the notification about the post and immediately freaked out, yelling, “What were you thinking tagging me in that picture? Take it down—now!” Grace was taken aback by his sudden outburst of anger and quickly deleted it. When Gary calmed down, he apologized profusely and explained to her that he was nervous because he was a very private person and had security clearance with his job as a government contractor that could get him in trouble at work.

It didn’t occur to Grace that this didn’t make sense, since Gary had an online presence in the first place. She didn’t look too deeply into it and bought the explanation. She just wanted to move on from the incident and start planning their future together. Her bubble would burst shortly after Gary returned home.

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