People are complex and researching them is difficult. We should expect to encounter more false starts in psychology and other social sciences than in, say, physics. Our power to know is less, but it's still an important topic to research because it allows us to better our lives and address important questions. We shouldn't blink just because we're bound to make many mistakes along the way.

It's true that people do employ the language of psychology as a cudgel. That's inappropriate. Unfortunately the nature of language is too be appropriate and used in novel ways, is inevitable that some of those will be counterproductive. The only solution I see is to educate people better about these concepts, and failing that to buy more time by abandoning terminology that has picked up insurmountable connotations and taking another step on the linguistic treadmill.

It's also true that a lot of people are profoundly effected by eg a romantic partner or boss who has those issues - not all of those people are wrong. I dated someone I believe has NPD, and it was an abusive and traumatic relationship. I have had family members who definitely had NPD, and they were abusive to their children. I've both been & seen people profoundly hurt by this (the NPD sufferers included).

It's callous to disregard people who have sought a diagnosis or to equate it to an astrological sign. If you haven't struggled with your mental health, or if you have struggled but have found adequate redress outside the clinical sphere, you may count yourself fortunate, but it's inappropriate to denigrate others who have had a different experience.

Personally I'm going to therapy and trying to find an anxiety medication that works for me, along with meditating, exercising, and other forms of intervention, and I have absolutely no shame about it. It was a great decision. I've seen medication and therapy make a night and day difference for people in my life.

I encourage everyone who experiences depression, anxiety, or other mental health issues to investigate professional help. Please don't let these judgemental misconceptions stop you.