Understanding Humans With Reptilian Instincts

CNI Psychological Self-Defense Class - Part I

If you pay much attention to social, political, or business analysis, you have likely heard someone described as having a “reptilian instinct.”

Dementia seems to have robbed trump of his effective instincts.

I was recently reminded by Charlie Sykes that trump is often described as having such an instinct politically, socially, and in seemingly every other way.

However, while I was clear on what the concept meant from a Counter-Narcissism perspective in relation to trump and other types of malignant narcissists, which is humans with “reptilian instincts” are usually cold-blooded, calculated, emotionless, and have a predatory way of looking at the world, I realized I was uncertain how the general public perceived the phrase, which made it an interesting and educational concept for us to explore together in a casual psychological self-defense class.

Goals

In this first of two sessions, we will break down relevant meanings, the Counter-Narcissism perspective, how we got here, reptilian dark arts, and the illusion that often makes them so effective.

The process should help readers have greater clarity on the primal minds we are forced to battle in our world. On the CNI end, it will increase our precision in building tools and counters for both stopping villains and winning hearts and minds, so please feel free to share.

Our secret weapons here can be simple, honest, and logical counters such as reptilian pattern recognition, which is something everyone should have in their psychological toolbox to avoid being hooked into someone’s primevel psychological game.

To set the mood, this is a really good and 🎯 song.

“Reptilian instincts”

As we have seen in recent times, those led by “reptilian instincts” are incapable of serving anyone but themselves. It’s just not in their nature. That is why it is crucial to note that an advantage that good people have over the cold-blooded is they are only capable of winning hearts and minds with lies, conditioning, bribes, and blackmail, so once those things start falling apart, it all begins to crumble before them.

On the existential side, as a narcissist collapses, they will lash out in shocking ways trying to reclaim some of their perceived lost power. Therefore, it is key to always remember that one must ensure their physical and mental safety before taking any narcissists head-on, because these kinds of reptilians can spew unfathomable forms of verbal lies, attacks, and poison in every direction in such circumstances.

CNI axiom: Before going too far down any narcissist’s rabbit hole, it is always best to start off with confirming definitions, because what you think you know in psychology and what the definitions say you know are often two very different things.

For example, at the beginning I knew what a narcissist was, but I had no idea that there were several forms of compulsive narcissistic personality disorders. That seemingly subtle difference was a game changer.

Suddenly, it wasn’t just about people being egotistical. It was the revelation that a fair amount had Cluster B personality disorders and that the serial killer psychopaths I thought I understood were on the same narcissistic spectrum, which, again to my great surprise, I knew nothing about.

Definition: In this context, a “reptilian instinct” refers to a cold-blooded predatory way that is focused on manipulating people into foolish primal responses instead of making rational decisions. This misdirection is normally caused by triggering people to react emotionally rather than thoughtfully and logically, which gives the manipulator an advantage. This behavior shows up in politics, marketing, personal relationships, or any situation when someone wants something without playing fair.

Real-world applications

The need to understand this concept is because people who rely on primal methods and manipulation do not need the truth to win, at least in the short term, so we must be prepared for that. They just need the right amount of confusion, pressure, stress, and false promises to make others act against their interests.

This is why psychological self-defense matters. If you can recognize someone baiting, love bombing, or guilt-tripping you, they will probably decide you are more trouble than you are worth, but some love a challenge, so don’t get cocky. 😉

epstein-class reptilians

These concepts are closely linked to the manipulative marketing, unscrupulous political messaging, and psychological targeting in the spirit of Cambridge Analytica and all other forms of sinister psychological operations paid for by wealthy malignant types to do their dirty work for them.

Yes, we are talking about the kind of professional gaslighting that hacks brains and appeals to humanity’s base instincts. It’s all about feeding into any natural, primal, or known fears, the details of which can often be found in every individual’s corporate data profile.

Of course, musk and trump likely sold their fellow epstein-class reptilians our government info too since they appear to have downloaded everything before elon got kicked out of doge. What a coincidence that musk seems to have extremely cold-blooded “reptilian instincts,” just like trump.

As we all have observed in recent years, inaccurate reactions are shaped, misguided public opinions are formed, and often villains win elections because they are capable of shamelessly lying, cheating, and stealing the margin of victory.

The core

At the center of this concept from a CNI perspective is that these individuals are, at their core, driven by predatory instincts far more than intellect, reasons, or often even emotions. While most humans interact and find common ground with others through empathy, shared values, and mutual understanding, nearly every move by these reptilian personalities seems either consciously self-serving or unconsciously primal.

For example, no matter how sincere malignant types appear to be, the attention they give is rarely genuine, because they are really driven by a compulsion to recruit flying monkeys, minions, and those they can use to acquire narcissistic supply. Sadly, real human connection is not something they value, beyond how that person can be exploited, used, dominated, and controlled. Sound like anyone we know?

Red flag: CNI consistently warns to beware of new “friends” who love-bomb you and then urge you to tell them some of your secrets, because a narcissist can and will use those secrets against you, reptilian style.

Counter-Narcissist Perspective

Prior to this analysis, I mostly thought of the “reptilian instinct” as referring to the way some people are cold-blooded and how there seemed to be little difference between their behaviors and malignant types of behaviors. By definition, nearly all who live by a cold and primal nature of targeting prey and manipulating people as a survival instinct are pretty “reptilian” in my book.

On the positive side, nothing in this research really challenged any CNI perceptions. On the negative side, nothing in the research really challenged CNI “reptilian instinct” perceptions that always seem to closely rhyme with the primal instincts of malignant narcissists, sociopaths, and psychopaths.

Certainly, every time I hear the term, I assume they are most likely talking about a cold-blooded and malevolent narcissistic predator until proven otherwise, but I don’t recall ever being failed by this psychological short-cut.

To be clear, I don’t believe in “lizard people” or any other biologically reptilian humanoids on Earth unless some ethically questionable reptile/human DNA clone splicing has been done or an advanced race is observing us. If Earthbound lizard people do exist, my guess is the slimy and slithery, snake-like Florida Medicare fraudster and senator Rick Scott is their leader.

How we got here

When it comes to the more intelligent, educated, and organized versions of malignant types of narcissists and those shielded by wealth and power, these manipulative people are not simply disordered personalities, they are hunters.

Over a lifetime of trial and error, they have become highly adaptive, venomous predators that are masterfully stealthy in social environments. Their adaptive human camouflage automatically adjusts to almost any situation that has something they want, crave, or need, because they know that is what it takes to fill their compulsions. Of course, if they were reptiles, this kind of instinctive lizard-brain behavior would be perfectly normal.

Indeed, this orientation in human form manifests as a cold-blooded, predatory, survival-driven intelligence that is focused on detecting, exploiting, and manipulating any psychological, emotional, or situational vulnerability as soon as it is spotted. Isn’t that what a reptilian human predator would do?

However, some of the more calculated, organized, or sneaky ones hiding in the shadows may work a long con for years, but have no doubt that tiny signs of reptilian thinking were there from the start. It is usually a matter of the predator learning how to better hide their true intentions and/or their relentless compulsion finding an opening around the firm barriers that previously kept them in check.

Experience, study, and observation

From what I have studied and observed from malignant narcissists, sociopaths, and psychopaths for almost 20 years is that I can usually spot those with a “reptilian instinct” because they are like sharks to blood in attacking normal human vulnerabilities, such as fears, insecurities, desires for approval, and loneliness.

Unlike people with normal human emotions who feel things, sense distress, and respond with concern, malignant personalities have no interest in such things, because other humans don’t have any value to them beyond what they can be used for. At a minimum, they make note of any weakness for future exploitation if it is not acted on immediately. It’s just their nature.

Of course, 🦂s are not reptiles, but the lesson is the same for a malignant narcissist with reptilian instincts. “It’s their nature.”

A reptilian instinct illusion

While it is true many narcissists seem to have a sixth sense about human nature that aids them in their psychological attacks, such as what motivates a person, weakens them, and can be used to control them, they are often not as clever in these dark arts as they appear to be.

That is because a common misconception that they certainly promote is that they often don’t know if someone is vulnerable until that person reveals it.

Indeed, what is crucial to remember is that malignant narcissists, sociopaths, and psychopaths are always shamelessly, compulsively, and constantly fishing to see who bites. When someone does, they have a new target.

Of course, they portray their “insight” of their target’s feelings as having a deep connection with you (love bombing), but it’s purely the numbers game of them shamelessly asking everyone the same question over and over. It becomes a routine.

Most think, “Why are you in my business?” but understandably the vulnerable and unsuspecting easily trust such lies of connection because that is what the vast majority of humanity wants. Every normie’s desire for connection is also probably why it is so easy for the cold-blooded to exploit. It is known.

Bottom line, almost all malignant types have used massive troll nets to attract and catch prey since the dawn of humans, so the sooner everyone realizes they are always fishing to see who bites, the better we can all defend ourselves when someone new suddenly appears to be deeply understanding hearts and minds.

There’s always a chance it is real, but have no doubt that this kind of behavior is also standard operating procedure for narcissists on the hunt.

There’s a reason humanity, and not reptiles dominates the Earth

As we have all seen recently, those with reptilian instincts may have political advantages in some situations and environments for a while, but when it comes to matters of war and peace, they will walk straight into inescapable traps. Their long-term thinking is distorted because they are too arrogant to have the appropriate fear of treacherous situations. For them, it all comes down to fight or flight, strong or weak, win or lose, or zero-sum, and that is no way to survive and progress as a person or a species.

Predatory instinct may offer short-term advantage in certain environments, but it eventually runs into the limits of arrogance, overconfidence, and poor long-term judgment. A person who sees every situation as a win-or-lose struggle will eventually create the kind of trap they cannot easily escape.

That is where common sense matters. Real strength is not just aggression or cunning. It is adaptability, cooperation, foresight, and the ability to understand both yourself and the other side.

CNI almost always aligns with Sun Tzu

You must “know the enemy and know yourself” to win in life. Our philosophy is once you fully process and know that these are pattern-based disorders that you can learn to identify, you have already made yourself a harder target and will know the ones that become an enemy better than they know themselves. However, it is almost always better to not have them affecting your life whenever possible.

For example, the above is not the kind of person you want in your life. On the bright side, their chaos strategy can be defeated if you understand malignant narcissist psychology, because you can understand their “reptilian instincts” while they do not.

The main lesson in Part I is whenever you think someone has a “reptilian instinct,” that should be a big red flag that they have a predatory nature and quite possibly a psychological disorder. Once you understand this dynamic, their power to affect you weakens, because you see the narcissistic patterns instead of their “mask of sanity.”

In Part II, likely out in the next few weeks, we further explore recognizing, decoding, and ways to counter reptilian thinkers.