Factitious Disorder, Pretending To Be Sick To Attract The Attention Of People Around

Ilustrations of Factitious Disorder (Cottonbro/Pexels)

JAKARTA - Factitious disorder or artificial disorder is a serious mental disorder in which a person pretends to be sick to get the attention of those around him. People with this mental disorder will act as if they have a physical or psychological illness.

Symptoms of factitious disorder can range from mild to severe. If it is severe, then the symptoms are called Munchausen syndrome. People with mental disorders are even willing to undergo painful or risky tests, such as surgery, just to gain the sympathy of others.

This is because they have difficulty controlling their emotions, causing the patient to self-harm in order to continue to produce more symptoms. As a result, they undergo unnecessary procedures and surgeries.

Launching the Mayo Clinic, Wednesday, April 20, signs and symptoms of factitious disorder consist of;

Have extensive knowledge of medical terms and illnesses Unclear or inconsistent symptoms of illness Willing to hurt themselves to keep looking sick Frequently changing hospitals or doctors Reluctant to allow doctors to talk to family or friends about the patient's health problems Frequent hospital stays Desire for frequent testing or risky operations to get special attention Lots of surgical scars or evidence of multiple procedures Lying about symptoms Mimicking symptoms of a particular disease

People with artificial disorders fake their illness by;

Exaggerating existing symptoms. Even when there is an actual medical or psychological condition, they may exaggerate symptoms to appear sicker or more disturbed than they really are. Manipulating medical history. They can manipulate fake disease history to the closest people, family, colleagues, friends, or health workers such as claiming to have cancer or AIDS just to get sympathy. They also do not hesitate to falsify medical records to support the drama that is being played. False symptoms. False symptoms are often exhibited, such as abdominal pain, seizures, or fainting. Vulnerable to self-harm. Patients with factitious disorder are willing to hurt themselves to look sick by injecting themselves with bacteria, milk, gasoline or dirt. Even more desperate, they did not hesitate to injure, cut or burn themselves. They dare to use drugs, such as blood thinners or drugs for diabetes, to imitate a disease. They also do not hesitate to scrape back the wound or make the wound re-infected in order to slow healing. Damage. They can manipulate medical instruments to change results, such as heating a thermometer. Or tampering with laboratory tests, such as contaminating a urine sample with blood or other substances. risk factors

Several factors can increase the risk of factitious disorder including;

Childhood trauma, such as emotional, physical or sexual abuse Serious illness during childhood Loss of a loved one through death, illness, or neglect Past experiences during illness and the care it brings A poor sense of identity or self-worth Personality disorders Depression Depression liaise with doctors or health centers Work in health care

The main treatment for factitious disorder is psychotherapy (a type of counselling). Treatment will likely focus on changing the thinking and behavior of the individual with the disorder, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy. Family therapy can also be helpful in teaching family members to disrespect or reinforce the behavior of the person with the disorder.