It is widely known and supported in clinical research that people living with certain personality disorders including narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) often have significant difficulties falling and staying asleep. Many self-identify as “night owls,” demonstrating a preference for late-night wakefulness that is closely correlated with heightened cognitive and emotional activation during the overnight hours. Individuals with NPD tend to experience increased rumination related to perfectionism, self-image and public perception, along with experiencing severe anxiety in maintaining their “social mask”, all of which have been correlated with insomnia.1, 2 Similarly, many with more malignant forms of narcissism typical of the Dark Triad, can experience a cognitive looping where the brain refuses to down-regulate, as the need to mentally “win” over regrets or losses with past experiences or relationships leads to feelings of narcissistic rage that reinforce the “loop” and insomnia.3
The primary driver of insomnia in individuals with NPD is hyperarousal, which is identified as a neurobiological state where the nervous system remains on high alert. Unlike a more neurotypical person who may worry about a deadline at work, or a project requirement for college without it affecting their sleep, narcissistic individuals become biologically and mentally activated by a deep-seated fear of losing control over others, or being seen as “less than” around the people in their life.
Existing research has moved beyond simple correlations with narcissism and insomnia, and is now examining how underlying personality traits prominent in the Dark Triad (narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy) produce distinct, yet overlapping, patterns of hyperarousal. While narcissistic insomnia typically includes fears associated with fragile self-esteem and perceived threats to their control and domination, other Dark Triad traits operate through more calculated mechanisms.
One trait in particular that is highly correlated with insomnia is Machiavellianism, which is a personality construct defined by premeditation, calculated planning, impression management, and goal-oriented social behavior based on patterns of severe manipulation. Those high in Machiavellian traits prioritize the long-term advantage over immediate gratification, which includes persistently monitoring others’ behavior for the upper hand. Their interpersonal style is marked by emotional detachment, superficiality and shallowness, and exploitation of others to maximize personal gains. This creates a cognitive mapping that is constantly active, plotting, future-focused, and does not easily back down.2, 3
The Dark Triad trait of Machiavellianism is structured around anticipation, control, and behavioral contingency planning. Thus, people high in Machiavellianism are particularly prone to cognitive hyperarousal at night because their brain is literally hardwired for constant planning. Bedtime becomes a period where the brain shifts into overdrive where they replay the day’s events to refine interpretations, think up alternative outcomes, and map future strategies. Unlike anxiety-driven rumination common in narcissism, Machiavellian rumination is self-reinforcing; thus, it feels productive, even when it is emotionally, mentally, and physiologically disruptive.
The onset of insomnia in individuals with high Machiavellian tendencies often begins during periods where social stakes increase such as highly competitive work environments, relationship instability, or attempted revenge on a past relationship or environment that left them feeling vulnerable. During these times, the increase in preoccupation and rumination about reestablishing control or gaining leverage often reinforces insomnia. Sleep starts playing second-fiddle to planning and manipulation as the brain begins to treat rest as a vulnerability.
Physiologically, sustained hyperarousal often shows up as in somatic symptoms associated with chronic stress activation. One of the most common is bruxism (teeth grinding), often occurring during sleep or periods of attempted rest, which is closely linked to temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ). Existing research has found psychological stress, sleep disturbances, and bruxism have insomnia as a main factor. These physical symptoms often spill into relational functioning: Chronic sleep deprivation is well-documented to impair emotional regulation and increase interpersonal conflict, specifically in those with narcissistic and Machiavellian traits, as this dynamic intensifies control-seeking, overall distrust and avoidance behaviors, all of which are reinforcing both to insomnia and underlying personality traits associated with the Dark Triad.
Ultimately, insomnia seen in those displaying NPD and/or Machiavellian traits is less about an inability to sleep and more about an inability to disengage. When identity, control, interpersonal power, and manipulation become the main ruminative focal points, restorative sleep starts feeling incompatible with survival itself. What appears on the surface as sleeplessness is often a system that has learned to equate stillness with vulnerability. Without intervention, this creates a self-perpetuating cycle where exhaustion, heightened reactivity, and strained relationships further reinforce the very patterns that are maintaining cycles of insomnia. Support requires not only treating sleep disturbances, but confronting the emotional and psychological mechanisms that make vulnerability feel unsafe in the first place.
