Lying by omission to make your life easier, embellishing reality to impress someone, we are all more or less guilty of it. Among scammers, falsifying reality is even a way of life. However, mythomania goes even further; it’s a pathological tendency to exaggerate or tell lies that are often rooted deeply in the patient’s past and self-esteem. A pathological tendency to lie, the term mythomania comes from the Greek mythos, meaning legend, and the Latin mania, meaning madness. It was Ernest Dupré, a French psychiatrist who, in 1905, first defined mythomania as a “pathological tendency, more or less voluntary and conscious, to lie and to create imaginary fables.” Today, mythomania is colloquially referred to as the disease of lies. However, even if it is true that mythomaniacs lie a lot, often to everyone, what characterizes them the most is that they lie first and foremost to themselves. They themselves believe in their fantasies. What for? According to experts, they do so to protect themselves from reality.
Understanding the Roots of Mythomania
Mythomania is above all a disease of self-esteem. Of course, most of us experience more or less small moments of mythomania; human beings have this natural tendency to embellish reality a little, to present themselves in a positive light. However, for mythomaniac people, it is a visceral need to be admired, to attract attention, to be complained about. For them, lying is a way to live with a narcissistic push to respond excessively to what they think are the expectations of those around them.
Childhood Influences
Most often, we find this psychological fragility in adults who suffered from a certain lack of interest during their childhood. Or who, conversely, were too adulated or spoiled in infancy. A traumatic event can also be a trigger. Take the example of Jane, who grew up feeling invisible in a large family. As an adult, she began to fabricate stories about her life to garner the attention she craved as a child. This behavior, while initially serving as a coping mechanism, spiraled into a full-blown compulsion, illustrating how childhood experiences can lay the groundwork for mythomania.
It’s not just about the absence of attention. Consider another case, where a child, Mark, was constantly praised for minor achievements, creating an unrealistic sense of self-importance. As Mark matured, he felt compelled to maintain this inflated image through fabrications, unable to cope with ordinary successes. This highlights how both neglect and excessive adulation can contribute to the development of mythomania.
Differentiating Mythomania from Other Disorders
Unlike scammers or manipulators who invent stories to achieve practical ends, the mythomaniac person does it above all to satisfy their insecurities. They experience a certain form of pleasure in believing and making believe that all desire is achievable. They have somehow remained at the psychic stage of “magical thinking,” a normal stage of development between the ages of 2 and 6 when a child imagines that what they think can act directly on the world.
Common Misunderstandings
A common mistake is to confuse mythomania with narcissistic personality disorder or compulsive lying. While there can be overlaps, mythomania is distinct in its roots and motivations. For instance, a narcissist might lie to maintain their self-image, while a mythomaniac does so primarily to cope with internal insecurities. Understanding these nuances is crucial for effective treatment.
To illustrate, consider Susan, who had traits of both mythomania and narcissistic personality disorder. While her narcissistic tendencies led her to seek admiration, her mythomania drove her to create elaborate tales to fill perceived personal voids. Through therapy, Susan began to distinguish these aspects, enabling more targeted approaches to her treatment.
The Impact of Mythomania
The repercussions of mythomania extend beyond the individual. Relationships with family, friends, and colleagues can become strained. Trust is the cornerstone of any relationship, and when it is repeatedly broken, the damage can be irreparable. Consider the case of Tom, whose habitual fabrications about his career successes led to a breakdown of trust with his partner, ultimately causing the dissolution of their relationship.
Psychological and Emotional Toll
For the mythomaniac, the constant need to maintain a web of lies can be exhausting. This lifestyle often leads to anxiety, stress, and even depression when the facade begins to crack. In severe cases, the individual might find themselves isolated, as maintaining relationships becomes increasingly challenging.
Imagine the inner turmoil of living a life based on deceit. Constant vigilance is required to keep stories straight, leading to a state of perpetual anxiety. For instance, Lisa, a mythomaniac, found herself unable to sleep, fearing that her colleagues might discover her exaggerated claims of past achievements, leading her to suffer from chronic insomnia and stress-related ailments.
Solutions and Treatment Options
When mythomaniacs find themselves confronted with their lies, some will sink even further into lies, others will opt for the truth. It is not uncommon for them to have anxiety attacks so intense that they require medical intervention. This is often the only opportunity for them to discuss their disorder with a doctor.
Psychological Care
While psychological care is essential, mythomania remains difficult to treat because the reasons for its triggering are often too painful and buried. Furthermore, the patient is very rarely the one seeking help. This request often comes from their entourage who find themselves overwhelmed by their condition. Treatment, of course, can only work if the patient agrees to be treated.
Therapeutic Approaches
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): This form of therapy can help individuals recognize and change their patterns of thinking and behavior. By addressing the underlying insecurities driving the compulsion to lie, CBT can be effective in reducing symptoms of mythomania. For example, John, a patient undergoing CBT, learned to identify triggers for his lying and developed healthier coping mechanisms.
- Psychodynamic Therapy: This approach delves into the patient’s past to uncover and address the deep-seated issues contributing to their behavior. Understanding the root causes can be pivotal in breaking the cycle of deceit. Through this therapy, Maria explored her childhood experiences, identifying unmet needs that fueled her mythomania.
- Group Therapy: Sharing experiences with others facing similar challenges can provide support and reduce feelings of isolation. It also offers a platform for practicing honesty in a safe environment. Participants often find solace in the shared understanding, as demonstrated by a support group where members openly discussed their struggles with truth and deception.
Building a Support System
For those close to someone with mythomania, patience and understanding are vital. It’s crucial to encourage the individual to seek professional help without resorting to blame or confrontation, which can exacerbate the issue. Educating oneself about the disorder can also aid in providing the necessary support.
Creating an environment that fosters trust and openness is essential. Family members, like Sarah, who supported her mythomaniac brother by gently encouraging therapy and celebrating his honest expressions, play a pivotal role in recovery. It’s about striking a balance between encouragement and accountability, helping the individual feel both supported and responsible for their actions.
Living with Mythomania
Living with mythomania is not easy, neither for the individual nor for those around them. Yet, with the right support and treatment, it is possible to manage the condition and rebuild trust in relationships. Honesty, though challenging, can become a source of liberation rather than anxiety.
Practical Tips for Managing Mythomania
- Set Realistic Goals: Encourage small, achievable steps towards honesty. Celebrate these victories to build confidence. For instance, setting a goal to tell the truth in a particular situation and acknowledging the effort when achieved can reinforce positive behavior.
- Create a Safe Space: Foster an environment where the individual feels safe to share their truth without fear of judgment. A supportive friend or therapist can be invaluable in this regard.
- Encourage Self-Reflection: Journaling or other reflective practices can help individuals understand their motivations and triggers. Writing about daily experiences and feelings can offer insights into the patterns of deceit, leading to breakthroughs in self-awareness.
- Seek Professional Guidance: Regular consultations with a mental health professional can provide ongoing support and strategies for coping with the disorder. Consistent therapy sessions can act as a sounding board, allowing for the exploration of new coping strategies and the reinforcement of positive changes.
The Road Ahead
The journey to overcoming mythomania is long and challenging, but it is not insurmountable. With empathy, patience, and the right interventions, individuals struggling with this condition can learn to embrace reality and foster genuine connections. The path to healing begins with acknowledging the problem and taking the first courageous step towards seeking help.
Understanding that setbacks may occur is also crucial. Relapses into old habits are not uncommon, but they should be viewed as part of the learning process rather than failures. Support systems, whether through family, friends, or therapists, should emphasize resilience and the importance of perseverance.
Navigating the complexities of mythomania requires dedication and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths. Yet, for those who embark on this path, the rewards can be profound: a life of authenticity, enriched relationships, and an inner peace that comes from living in alignment with one’s true self.
