Inside the Mind of a Sociopath

No emotions but anger, no empathy and, for many, murderous ideation.

It is believed that most people will encounter a sociopath at some point in their lives, and many won’t even know it. I don’t know about you, but I can think of a few people I’ve met who seem to fit that description. You don’t really know you’re dealing with a sociopath until after you get to know them fairly well.

Not all sociopaths are murderous monsters. Most of the time, they seem quite charming, intelligent, and capable, and though they lack empathy and conscience, they use those traits for good.

Mental health professionals no longer use the term “sociopath” because the word is associated with a great number of repugnant things, including violence. And since sociopathy isn’t something a person has any control over, as it is considered mental illness, and since many sociopaths are able to lead fulfilling, productive lives, sociopathy is now referred to as Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD).

Antisocial Personality Disorder makes it sound like the affected person just prefers to stay at home and binge on Netflix.

Indeed, many of those with APD are, in fact, harmless individuals who lead relatively normal lives and never commit a crime. That does not negate the fact that sociopaths are more likely to become violent…