Compulsive Vs Pathological Liars
Out-of-control lying is known as compulsive or pathological lying. Definitions are fluid, experts say.
Compulsive liars have a need to embellish and exaggerate, says Paul Ekman, PhD, a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California in San Francisco and the author of Telling Lies, among other books. “They tell the stories they think want to be heard,” he says. When you ask a compulsive liar for an opinion on an important issue, says Dr. Ekman, theyre likely to say something like this: “You know, you made a really wise choice in asking my opinion. Many people do. I’ve actually been asked by the governor of California to comment on this.”
“Often, theyre pretty good liars,” Ekman adds. “You often believe what they say at least for a while.”
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Pathological liars may be even bolder. They ”continue to lie when they know you know theyre lying,” Ekman says. The two lying types are pretty similar, he says, and actually, ”You could be a compulsive pathological liar.”
Neither compulsive nor pathological lying has been studied extensively, say Feldman and Ekman. “I don’t think we really know enough about the etiology of these to know if they should be considered a mental disorder,” notes Ekman.
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Fortunately, neither type of liar is common, according to Feldman and Ekman. Ekman estimates fewer than 5 percent of people lie compulsively or pathologically.
Early Warning Signs Of Schizophrenia
In some people, schizophrenia appears suddenly and without warning. But for most, it comes on slowly, with subtle warning signs and a gradual decline in functioning, long before the first severe episode. Often, friends or family members will know early on that something is wrong, without knowing exactly what.
In this early phase of schizophrenia, you may seem eccentric, unmotivated, emotionless, and reclusive to others. You may start to isolate yourself, begin neglecting your appearance, say peculiar things, and show a general indifference to life. You may abandon hobbies and activities, and your performance at work or school can deteriorate.
What If I Am A Carer Friend Or Relative
It can be distressing if you are a carer, friend or relative of someone who has schizophrenia. You can get support.
How can I get support for myself?
You can do the following.
- Speak to your GP about medication and talking therapies for yourself.
- Speak to your relatives care team about family intervention. For more information about family intervention see the further up this page.
- Speak to your relatives care team about a carers assessment.
- Ask for a carers assessment.
- Join a carers service. They are free and available in most areas.
- Join a carers support group for emotional and practical support. Or set up your own.
What is a carers assessment?NICE guidelines state that you should be given your own assessment through the community mental health team to work out what effect your caring role is having on your health. And what support you need. Such as practical support and emergency support.
The CMHT should tell you about your right to have a carers assessment through your local authority. To get a carers assessment you need to contact your local authority.
How do I get support from my peers?You can get peer support through carer support services or carers groups. You can search for local groups in your area by using a search engine such as Google. Or you can call our advice service on 0808 801 0525. They will search for you.
How can I support the person I care for?
You can do the following.
There is no definition for what high risk means. It could include:
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Mental Health Conditions Explained
Addiction
What: Addiction is when a person compulsively persists in certain behaviours regardless of the consequences. A person can be addicted to substances or activities . Over time, the frequency and intensity of the activity increases, and when the person stops, he or she experiences unpleasant feelings or emotions. Symptoms: Impaired control, social problems such as being unable to concentrate in school or work because of the addiction, making excuses or lying in order to continue with activity, engaging in risky behaviour in order to continue with activity . Treatment and help: Individual or group talk therapy, sometimes in combination with medication to control drug cravings, can help. Individuals dealing with substance abuse may also require detoxification and rehabilitation services.
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Anxiety
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Bipolar
Depression
Schizophrenia and other psychoses
Want to know more? Here are the articles we referenced to compile this resource:
Positive Symptoms Of Schizophrenia
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia are ones that are atypically present, as they can disrupt a persons grasp of reality. Some mental health professionals also collectively refer to these symptoms as psychosis. Positive symptoms are experienced on a more active basis.
Consider the most common positive symptoms of schizophrenia:
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The Truth Behind Pathological And Compulsive Liars
We all lie, but some people take it to extremes, destroying careers and relationships in the process.
Admit it: From time to time, you lie at least a little. Your best friend asks what you think of her new haircut. It’s awful, but you tell her it looks great. A spouse wants to know if that extra 10 pounds shows, and of course, you say it doesnt.
“Lying is part and parcel of everyday life,” says Robert Feldman, PhD, professor of psychological and brain sciences and deputy chancellor at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. “In a sense, lies are the lubricants that move social interaction forward,” says Dr. Feldman, who wrote The Liar in Your Life.
But when lying gets out of control it can wreak havoc in your personal and professional lives potentially destroying relationships and careers.
Here’s what you need to know about extreme lying.
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Hope For The Patient And Family
A diagnosis of schizophrenia is life-changing for those affected and everyone who loves them. But, with hard work and dedication, you can help your loved one enjoy a meaningful life.
People with schizophrenia can finish college, work jobs, get married, have families and enjoy a reasonably healthy life, stresses Dr. Bowers.
But it requires a combination of good medication, supportive counseling and being connected to community resources.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness offers support groups for the mentally ill and their families. And organizations like Recovery International and Emotions Anonymous are excellent resources for patients, she says.
Functioning In Social And Professional Situations
When social and work functioning is impaired it may be helpful to consult with a doctor. Because the symptoms tend to develop over time you may not realize how long you have been experiencing trouble in these areas of your life. Noticing that a pattern has developed can be a signal to consult with a professional.
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What Are The Symptoms Of Schizophrenia And How Is It Diagnosed
How is schizophrenia diagnosed?
Only a psychiatrist can diagnose you with schizophrenia after a full psychiatric assessment. You may have to see the psychiatrist a few times before they diagnose you. This is because they need to see how often you are experiencing symptoms.
There are currently no blood tests or scans that can prove if you have schizophrenia. So, psychiatrists use manuals to diagnose schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.
The 2 main manuals used by medical professionals are the:
- International Classification of Diseases which is produced by the World Health Organisation , or
- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual which is produced by the American Psychiatric Association .
NHS doctors use the ICD-10.
The manuals explain which symptoms should be present, and for how long for you to receive a diagnosis. For example, according to the NHS you need to be hearing voices for at least 1 month before you can be diagnosed. Mental health professionals may say you have psychosis before they diagnose you with schizophrenia.
What is the future of diagnosis in schizophrenia?There are many research studies being conducted across the world on how to better diagnose schizophrenia. For example, a recent study found through looking at images of the brain, there may be different sub-types of schizophrenia.
What are the symptoms of schizophrenia?
The symptoms of schizophrenia are commonly described as positive symptoms or negative symptoms. This doesnt mean that they are good or bad.
What Is A Narcissistic Liar
It follows that narcissists may overestimate their lie-telling ability and report frequent lying merely because they tend to self-enhance desirable abilities. Specifically, narcissists self-assessments of their lying abilities and self-reports of lying may not be valid indicators of their actual lying behavior.
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Schizophrenia And Dangerous Behaviour
Schizophrenia and Dangerous Behaviour
It is one of the commonest and most enduring myths around schizophrenia that all people suffering from this condition are violent. In public opinion schizophrenia is most often associated with violence than with any other type of disordered behaviour.
This is undoubtedly fed and reinforced by rancorous and ill-informed media reporting of the subject. Articles and current affairs programmes that focus on violence in schizophrenia whilst ignoring all of the other features of this complex condition, particularly the high suicide rate and telling us very little about the illness in general, are sadly all too common. A study carried out in 1994 of the British news media found that stories about violence by people with schizophrenia outweighed sympathetic news stories about the condition by about four to one.11
Sadly this subject is one that many people engaged in the caring professions feel particularly uncomfortable discussing. Dangerous behaviour is very often seen by them as a failure on the part of the doctors rather than as a feature of a society which undervalues people with mental illness and under-funds mental health services. In addition, at times of tragedy, they are often faced with hostile reporting by the media which seeks to point fingers of blame at the doctors rather than at societys attitudes to treating mental illness.
Are people with schizophrenia dangerous?
Schizophrenia and suicide
Schizophrenia and violence
References
No Matter What Stay Calm
Even though dealing with a pathological liar can be incredibly hurtful and upsetting, its not worth your energy to argue with someone who lives in a fantasy world. Starting a conflict with someone who may not know what they are doing wont help anyone. Be sure to always keep your cool and avoid directly engaging with the lies.
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Why Positive And Negative Symptoms
Symptoms of schizophrenia can be referred to as positive or negative, but they dont mean good and bad.
Disordered thinking, hallucinations and delusions are called positive symptoms because they are something added to the persons normal experience. Low motivation and decreased pleasure are called negative because they take something away from a person’s experience.
Early Intervention Programs For Young People
Schizophrenia most often develops for the first time between the late teens and early twenties. Identifying young people in the early stages of a psychotic illness and providing them with specialised support and treatment can make a huge difference to their future health.
Specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are also available across Australia talk to your GP about finding a service near you. You can also contact your local headspace or their online support service, eheadspace to enquire about early intervention for psychosis.
Your public hospital
The treatment available through a public community mental health team ranges from acute inpatient care, where you are admitted and stay in hospital, to outpatient treatment in the community. The type of service provided can differ a lot from state to state and hospital to hospital.
Your state or territory Department of Health can help you identify your local community mental health services, or you can use the National Health Services Directory.
Treatment in a private hospital
With private health insurance, its also possible to get treatment in a private hospital. To ensure your money is well spent, research the different types of cover available and the treatment programs offered by hospitals in your area.
Private therapists
Other services
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How Lying Can Impact Personal Relationships
Although a person with bipolar disorder may lie not out of spite, but because of an episode the stories they spin can still hurt. However frequent, lying can fracture the trust you have in your relationship. The more lies that are told, the deeper the fracture can become until the relationship is completely severed.
Losing relationships can further alienate someone with bipolar disorder. This can exacerbate their symptoms.
Pathological Lying: A Sign Of Several Health Conditions
While the occasional white lie is considered to be a normal part of social interactions, repeated and elaborate fabrications cross into a very different territory. But what do you do when you realise the person you love is a pathological liar?
Persistent dishonesty is a clear sign of something gone wrong in a friend or loved one. As trust is a fundamental component of relationships, repeated violations of it indicate serious problems are afoot. Lying can occur for a variety of reasons, and ascertaining the root cause of the dishonesty is critical in addressing the problem and beginning to rebuild relationships.
Pathological lying is a unique type of mental health disorder that often co-occurs with other mental health conditions. Understanding the nuances of pathological lying can help you know if your loved one is struggling with this condition, and how to support them.
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What Support Options Are Available
People with bipolar disorder can turn to the International Bipolar Foundation for more information on the illness, personal stories about lying, and ways they can find treatment and help. Bipolar Lives, an online community to help people with bipolar disorder live healthy lives, also has a section on lying that may help those affected.
We also annually collect a number of the best blogs, videos, and apps, that can help anyone living with bipolar disorder and their friends and family learn more about the condition and manage their well-being. For more support, check out our for mental health awareness.
Is My Psychiatrist Lying
He said negative symptoms are caused by low dopamine in certain brain areas and positive symptoms are caused by high dopamine in other brain areas like the striatum. Is he right? What if its permanent brain damage and hes lying?
Well, I doubt hes lying but there is such a thing as SZ negative symptoms and I dont think that you necessarily have to be on a drug to get them. If they werent negative symptoms of Sz theyd be called drug side effects instead of negative symptoms of sz.
tbh i dont think he is lying but i think they dont really know why its happening all
This is responsible for energy, motivation, concentration and working memory
From what I have read, dopamine levels are one of the keys to understanding schizophrenia
As far as I know, they dont have medications that only affect particular parts of the brain. Hopefully they can develop these smart drugs, to ease symptoms with less side effects
I dont think dopamine is too high in absolute concentrations, but due to abnormalities in NMDA-glutamate neurotransmission, dopamine is functionally too high in the limbic area, and too low in the prefrontal cortex. So, I think in essence your psychiatrist is right.
-Albert.
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Challenges In Reaching Out
It can be challenging for people with schizophrenia to reach out to a doctor or other health professional about their concerns. This can be particularly tough for people who may be experiencing symptoms that leave them feeling suspicious of others.
Reassurance from people they trust can be helpful in encouraging and prompting someone to speak with a doctor or other mental health professional.
Why Do Pathological Liars Lie
Why someone lies pathologically is often unknown to the audience and to the liar themselves. According to Psych Central, a pathological liar appears to lie for no apparent reason or personal gain. In fact, chronic lying seems to be a pointless habit, one which is incredibly frustrating for family, friends, and coworkers. The Psychiatric Times defines pathological lying as a long history maybe lifelong history of frequent and repeated lying for which no apparent psychological motive or external benefit can be discerned.
It is interesting to note that studies have shown pathological liars to have more white matter in the prefrontal area of their brain, which might impact why they are so prone to compulsive lying. People with more white matter have been found to have problems with empathy and emotion, but also have quicker connections, verbal fluency, and faster thought processing.
Additionally, pathological lying has been marked as a key symptom of antisocial personality disorder. Those with antisocial personality disorder have a common disregard for the rights of others and are known to tell lies to gain status or manipulate others.
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What Causes Compulsive Lying
Psychologists disagree whether compulsive lying can stand alone as its own diagnosis. Currently, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual does not recognize it as a separate mental health condition. Yet compulsive lying does appear as a symptom of several larger conditions.
Compulsive lying may be a symptom of:
Compulsive lying rarely indicates psychosis. People who lie compulsively can often identify their accounts as lies. Thus, they are not distanced from reality.
Some psychologists believe a persons environment plays a large role in compulsive lying. A person may live in a context where deception creates advantages. If a community does not assign firm or consistent consequences for lying, a person may believe the benefits of lying outweigh the risks. Lies might also be a coping mechanism for low self-esteem or past trauma.
Despite these short-term benefits, compulsive lying often backfires in the long run. A habitual liar may feel extreme stress from keeping track of their falsehoods. They may struggle to live up to their own claims. If their lies are exposed, their relationships will likely grow strained. In some cases, they may face legal consequences.