It was very very disturbing the lack of comprehension at certain times
So the one I was with was similar.
A few years ago I had to get a gum graft on the upper front 5 of my teeth. I have no idea why, but my gums were receding and I needed to get this surgery done.
Well long story short this girl I was dating forced her way to this appointment. I had only been with her a few months and told her it wasn't necessary but she kept insisting..."I know I don't have to go, I WANT TO GO!"....
"K..." I thought.
Well day of the appointment I get there about 10 minutes til 9 AM because the appointment was at 9:15 I believe. Well she's there already waiting outside the building. This was on a Saturday morning.
After the surgery I come out into the waiting room and may face is so swollen I look like I should be in a freak show act. I found out from the front desk that my insurance isn't paying for as much of this as I thought they were going to. What I thought was going to cost a few hundred dollars was now going to cost a few thousand..I was livid and in a-lot of pain....and this girl just stares at me.
It was one of these situations where I was trying to be tough or whatever and just deal with the problem but it was a very tough situation in the moment and I could have really used a "there there" hand on my shoulder or hug from her but it was as if she didn't know how to comfort me in that situation so she just shut down. I finally asked her why the hell she was even there and she angrily snapped back "Well what do you want me to do? Call your insurance company?" I couldn't believe it. I literally had to tell her "I want you to give me a f*cking hug and tell me this will turn out OK". Just unbelievable.
To me this was a good example of the idealization vs. actual caring and intimacy. Anything beyond a very high level, superficiality is impossible for them when it comes to actual closeness and connection with others - when it gets to that point is where you really see the disorder show itself. And it can be a lightswitch type of thing. fascinating to ponder from a-far, absolutely devastating to experience firsthand.