An important preface:

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It is advisable that therapists aspiring to work with individuals with NPD set boundaries around how much focus is placed on materials that express bias for victims of Narcissistic Abuse in your efforts to learn more about treating the disorder. There is an intensely active community online, with no shortage of resources, for therapists who wish to treat individuals who have experienced Narcissistic Abuse, and these are valuable in their own right.

In order to reduce the impact of counter-transference, and maintain fidelity for understanding and holding positive regard for clients with NPD under your care, a deliberate effort to focus on the disorder’s impact on the client and resultant suffering, its etiology, and treatment, is highly recommended. The reality is that much of what can be found online related to NPD is overwhelmingly negative and contemptful, saturated with demeaning perceptions and opinions of NPD and Narcissism. While it is understandable that many of these vantage-points are informed by the trauma, suffering, and anger that has resulted from abusive behaviors of loved ones who are perceived to be “narcissists”, on the whole, these discourses have very little to offer clients who actually have NPD when they are attempting to examine the root of their condition and a way forward into mental wellness and recovery.

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A compassionate approach that is forward-thinking should anticipate this potential onslaught of negative information that both a therapist and client with NPD will encounter when researching the diagnosis. Directly addressing that fact, as well as offering helpful and change-focused materials, can empower clients with hope, and help to scaffold the therapeutic journey under the weight of the negative messaging a client will eventually encounter on their own. While a client’s accountability for their actions is important, and ultimately paramount in the treatment of a personality disorder, the complexity of the disorder and multifaceted nature of the road to recovery necessitate that treatment should be thoughtfully constructed. Treatment will naturally require and evolve to provide abundant opportunity for self-reflection, with an examination of shame and guilt as valuable and instructive foci. Ultimately, the client benefits from our ability to hold out hope, warmth, and compassion, despite their challenges. For this reason, great consideration should be used throughout a therapist's pursuit of training and understanding of NPD, as well as within the therapeutic context itself.

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Please note that this current list is somewhat lacking in organization, but should prove useful otherwise. It is far from complete.