My Life As A Psychopath

Meet Sam Vaknin, author of the book Malignant Self Love. Sam knows he’s a supreme narcissist, but is he also, as he suspects, a psychopath? To find out, he becomes the world’s first civilian volunteer to be thoroughly tested for psychopathy.

Along the way, Vaknin encounters the minefield of scientific, ethical, moral and social issues involved in owning that label. When things don’t quite go his way, he turns on the film-makers, unleashing vicious displays of verbal abuse, and some free psychological analysis of his own.

Then, there's his wife Lidija. She wants a baby, but isn't sure that Sam is suitable parent material. And to make things worse, Lidija’s sister believes she’s been brainwashed by her twelve years with Sam.

I, Psychopath is a classic road trip/head trip movie, with a strong narrative, jeopardy, a cast of engaging characters and an irreverent gonzo style.

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[Catnipatrick]

“I love to be hated.”
“I hate to be loved.”

-That’s a lot of feelings for someone literally claiming they don’t care what others think or are claiming to be void of emotions, lol.
What a attention seeker.

[sionnaich]

It's kind of apparent how insecure he is. He gets angry so fast about small things and always feels like he needs to belittle other people.

[wombatperson]

This guy takes the "i'm crazy and that's quirky" thought process to a new level.

[ryanblack]

My mom's boyfriend is a psychopath. His eyes bore through you to your soul. It's very chilling how he can calmly just belittle you without even changing the tone of his voice. I still shudder on the rare occasions I see him.

[jennmemphis]

I’m only halfway through this video but I find it fascinating because I am a fan of Sam. My father was a malignant narcissist and Sam’s content taught me a lot about my father, how to deal and how to not deal with my father, and ultimately how to let go of the fantasy of having a relationship with someone who is that mentally ill. My father has been dead for years but I still struggle with the things that he taught me as a child and the lies that he said about me and the things that he said to me live on in my mind. I struggle with the legacy of shame and hurt and incompetency that he told me, defined me. He was a screw and ruthless to me as Sam is to this film maker and he was my father so you can imagine the power of those words coming from the man who brought you to life. I ended up marrying a man who was somewhat narcissistic on a much lower level but still abnormal. And I have a history of men and women in my path, friends, coworkers, bosses that would rate very high on the narcissism scale because I was used to dealing with that type of personality, good and bad.

[SophieGreenleaf]

He's not a psychopath. He's a paranoid narcissist that would likely be in a psych ward, if he hadn't lucked out and married a "mommy" to give him rules. I hope they're happy.

[robinbank]

His reaction to the PhD brewhaha was precisely how you'd expect a pathological narcissist to respond to being called out about not finishing his PhD.

[TheeCuteness]

I just found this doc *YEARS AFTER* watching Sam's YouTube channel on narcissism...
I can only say that his words were a truth that freed me from a toxic narcissist. It also helped me see ways of better advocating for myself as a whole. I'm not sure about his being a psychopath BUT he is definitely a very self insightful narcissist and his advice was invaluable to me at a time when I had no other information on what and more importantly *who* I was dealing with.

[chicky-toqs]

He is dead set on being a psychopath. It's like he builds his whole personality around it

[Ashley-pcrh]

This guy is a narcissistic…it’s not a scam ..I dealt with a classic narcissist for years and he provides the truest insight in his talks. The way he interacts in this documentary just confirmed it for me. The only thing that perplexes me is his ability to self analyze…it’s incredible and I would say extremely rare and those of us who have suffered through a situation like this are lucky to have him because otherwise it would be difficult to get any true understanding since most narcissists will never admit there is something wrong with them since there is no one inside them how or what will they analyze. It’s just as he says.

[Msaprilconquest]

She claims he's the best person she's ever met yet doesn't want to have a child with him. THANK GOD!

[HerezoGonzo]

He acts like he's surprised he scored so high like we haven't watched him champion himself as king psycho for like 45 minutes.

[honeybee]

Seeing the film maker's ritual cleansing after his short time with Sam brought back chilling memories after my (less than 1 year) relationship with a psychopath. I ended up having an 8 month long nervous breakdown after realizing I had been chosen, targeted, and repeatedly "raped by deception" by a complete fraud, a stranger, & a monster demon. I was bedridden, self-isolated, begging God to remove the filth left on me, and did hundreds of ritual cleansings & soul tie cord cutting exercises in meditation.

Night terrors, shaking uncontrollably, couldn't get out of bed for longer than maybe an hour at a time, brain fog, could not let men look at me, fear of red trucks, left with PTSD... its taken nearly 5 years to heal the trauma (with counseling and meds).

When you've been with one, there's no mistaking how evil they really are.
His poor wife has Stokholm Syndrome.

[maggiek]

This is a 2009 documentary for anyone wondering

[gayled]

Fascinating documentary. My deepest sympathy to you having to spend more than five minutes in his company.

[georgealanthompson]

When Sam told the director to lay down and think about all the bad things he said about him and to figure out what was true, was the real serious torture. That could keep someone locked in their own head for a long time.

[sir.richardpound]

I'm not going to defend this guy, but Sam Vaknin and his videos are extremely insightful and more interesting than this video. He literally a self proclaimed and diagnosed malignant narcissist. I don't see it hard to believe him playing the role just to fill the narrative of this documentary. Just being honest to anyone who reads this.

[jennmemphis]

Wow, this makes Sam look very bad. He’s horrible. It reminds me of my father. Imagine being around this man for 46 years.

[lisesandmellem]

Thank you for this amazing documentation. It's a gift. Even if it's dark it brings in light in a dark room so we can see clearer. I recognise Sam's bullying and games in bad leaders I have, and he explains brilliantly how the brain shuts down in fear. That gives us an antidote, and we should be grateful for him showing us this. All we have is this, we must not give in to fear and shut down. We must see these people for who they are, and learn how to deal with them. I know now, that every time I get that feeling now around someone, I end the contact. Unfortunately many of them will be our boss.

[MoeWhiskey]

He's a nutcase wanting to be a fruitcake.