Nick Cannon left stunned after shock mental health diagnosis after fathering 12 children: 'I need help'

Nick Cannon is breaking his silence about a new mental health diagnosis he’s learning to live with.

Earlier this month, the 44-year-old father-of-12 revealed on his Counsel Culture podcast that he had been diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).

Suffers have an unreasonably high sense of self-importance, and they tend to seek out attention from others, according to the Mayo Clinic. People with narcissistic personality disorder may also have difficulty caring for the feelings of other people. 

Although it's currently believed that narcissistic personality disorder, like other personality disorders, is a lifelong condition, the symptoms can improve with aggressive therapy.

While serving Thanksgiving dinners at the Los Angeles Mission on Wednesday, Cannon told People that he had always suspected he might have undiagnosed mental health conditions. 

'I still don't understand it all the way, but I kind of always wanted to get tested for it. I did a bunch of tests,' he explained. 'I've been diagnosed with ADHD. Even as a kid it was dyslexia, but just knowing that I'm just a neurodivergent individual, I kind of always knew

The Wild 'N Out host added that he's treating his newly diagnosed condition gives him a new opportunity to improve himself and his life.

'I feel like there's so many labels out there, but it's like, to be able to embrace it and say, "Look, I'm healing. I need help. Show me." I just embrace mental health and therapy in such a strong way,' he explained. 

'To be able to say I'm an example for others, but also be healing during the self-process works too.'

Cannon previously had Dr. Cheyenne Bryant, a psychologist, on his podcast to diagnose him.

During their chat, he admitted that most of the 'markers' for narcissistic personality disorder described him to a T.

But the development made him feel empowered as he came to understand the disorder through his 'research.' 

The causes of narcissistic personality disorder aren't currently known, though childhood factors are theorized to play a role in developing the condition.

Unhealthy relationships with parents are thought to play a role, though multiple different behaviors could impact the development of NPD. 

Children who are rejected by parents or excessively critiqued could be at risk, but kids who receive excessive praise from caregivers could also be in danger of developing the disorder, according to Harvard Medical School. 

NPD may be expressed in different ways, and some individuals may still lead relatively normal, productive lives while living with the condition, though it may be debilitating for others.

It often occurs in concert with other mental health conditions, most commonly including depression, anxiety, substance abuse, bipolar disorder or other personality disorders.

The personality disorder affects around five percent of adults in the US and is around 50 percent more common in men than women. 

In addition to being known for his acting and hosting roles, Cannon is nearly as famous for his enormous family.

The Drumline star now has 12 children from several different mothers since welcoming his first child in 2011.

In 2011, this then-wife Mariah Carey gave birth to his first two children, the fraternal twins Moroccan and Monroe, 13.

He and the model Britney Bell subsequently expanded his family with three more children: Golden Sage, seven; Powerful Queen, three; and Rise Messiah, 14 months.