Does this sound familiar?

What Is Grandiosity?

A grandiose self-image might lead you to:

  • believe unique traits and talents set you above everyone else

  • consider yourself unstoppable, untouchable, or destined for great and important things

  • have persistent feelings of superiority

Grandiosity refers to a sense of specialness and self-importance that might lead you to:

  • boast about real or exaggerated accomplishments

  • consider yourself more talented or intelligent than others

  • dismiss or try to one-up the achievements of others

  • believe you don’t need anyone else to succeed

  • believe you’re above rules or ordinary limits

  • fail to recognize that your actions could harm others

  • lash out in anger when someone criticizes you or points out a flaw in your plans

Grandiosity often resembles self-centered or arrogant behavior, so people often don’t recognize it as a mental health symptom.

In some cases, extreme grandiosity can take the form of delusions or fixed beliefs unsupported by facts and reality.

Delusions in this instance go beyond excessive self-importance. You don’t just consider yourself special. You firmly believe you’re a historical figure or famous person, have supernatural abilities, or some other unique power.

Grandiosity isn’t considered a mental health condition on its own, but it might show up as a symptom of one.

Grandiosity in narcissistic personality [NPD] often ties into other key signs of the condition, such as difficulty empathizing with others and a constant need for praise and admiration.

Grandiosity in NPD might show up as:

  • feeling entitled to special treatment because you expect others to recognize your unique gifts

  • describing your achievements and abilities in great detail to earn attention and recognition

  • looking down on others because you consider them inferior or unimportant

Is grandiosity always a mental health symptom?

There’s nothing uncommon about dreaming big, recognizing your talents, or feeling special.

It’s also fairly natural to have some passing feelings of superiority after accomplishing something out of the ordinary.

Grandiosity can be problematic when it:

  • becomes a consistent pattern of behavior or thought

  • prevents you from considering more realistic perspectives

  • negatively affects your relationships

  • develops along with other mental health symptoms

  • creates the potential for physical harm or other unwanted consequences

-  “What is Grandiosity?” Written by Crystal Raypole and medically reviewed by Vara Saripalli, Psy.D.  Updated on April 28, 2021. PsychCentral