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Blogs > rm_trainmepls1 > Seven Eves

Munchausen by Internet  

rm_trainmepls1 53F
475 posts
2/15/2010 1:52 pm
Munchausen by Internet

Munchausen Syndrome

This is a mental illness called a "factitious disorder." In Munchausen syndrome, the "patients" fake an illness because they crave the attention, care and sympathy that sick people get. They will even go so far as to consult multiple doctors and undergo tests and even surgery for their faked conditions. People with this disorder don't generally do it for monetary gain. They do it to get attention, lenience, act out anger and jealousy, and/or control others. It's truly a mental illness. The cause of it is unknown.

Munchausen by Internet

Dr. Mark D. Feldman, a specialist in Munchausen syndrome, has identified a new variation on the disorder that he calls "Munchausen by Internet," but the disorder hasn't been accepted into the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV-TR. People with this condition join online medical support groups and carry out their deception through the chat and forum communities online. They create multiple accounts and pose as friends and family members of the "sick" person, to try to make it more convincing.

The disorder can involve faking a severe illness or being the victim of stalking, harassment, and physical or sexual abuse. It can also be carried out "by proxy," where the person pretends that his or someone close to him is suffering from any of the above conditions. In the "by proxy" cases, sometimes the perpetrator will play the role of a victim and other times the role of a hero, but the intent is still to garner attention.

Pseuicide

Munchausen by Internet is becoming so common that the term "pseuicide" is widely in use to jokingly describe it. Here's the definition from the Urban Dictionary: "Faking a terminal illness or death on the internet. May be done for the lulz, to get sympathy and lip gloss, or to see who your real friends are. A pseuicide usually divides a web community into suckers and insensitive douchebags. Death announcements can be made by a sockpuppet."

According to Dr. Feldman's research, these are some of the common patterns exhibited by people with Munchausen by Internet:

  • Medical literature from websites or textbooks is often duplicated or discussed in great detail.
  • The length and severity of purported physical ailments conflicts with user behavior. Feldman uses the example of someone posting in considerable detail about being in septic shock, when such a possibility is extremely unlikely.
  • Symptoms of ailments may be exaggerated as they correspond to a user's misunderstanding of the nature of an illness.
  • Grave situations and increasingly critical prognoses are interspersed with "miraculous" recoveries.
  • A user's posts eventually reveal contradictory information or claims that are implausible: for example, other users of a forum may find that a user has been divulging contradictory information about occurrence or length of hospital visits.
  • When attention and sympathy decreases to focus on other members of the group, a user may announce that other dire events have transpired, including illness or death striking a close family member.
  • When faced with insufficient expressions of attention or sympathy, a forum member claims this as a cause that symptoms worsen or do not improve.
  • A user resists contact beyond the internet, by telephone or personal visit, often by claiming bizarre reasons for not being able to accept such contact.
  • Further emergencies are described with inappropriate happiness, designed to garner immediate reactions.
  • Other forum members post on behalf of a user that exhibit identical writing styles, spelling errors, and language idiosyncrasies, suggesting that the user has created fictitious identities to move the conversation in their direction.

    This sort of behaviour is more common in online medical support groups, but I've seen and heard similar behaviour many times on the various dating sites I've belonged to, particularly with stories of sexual abuse and stalking, but also with false claims of chronic diseases and death. I'm sure you've all run into it, too. The fictitious stories can take months and even years to play out.

    How to Deal With Someone Exhibiting Munchausen by Internet

    The impact of this kind of deception on Internet communities is pretty bad. It tends to rip them apart, as people take sides, some believing the ruse and others pointing out the deception. Group members are accused of disloyalty, gullibility, persecution, etc. Dr. Feldman acknowledges that sadism, on the part of the "patient," is present in the worst cases. Victims of such deceit say that they feel "emotionally " when they find out that they've been deceived. Sometimes, groups that have fallen prey to such a scenario never recover from the negativity and schisms that arise.

    What should an Internet group do, when they suspect that such a situation is unfolding?

  • It's important to balance skepticism with empathy; not everybody is a "faker." Dr. Feldman suggests having "a small number of established members gently, empathetically, and privately question the author of the dubious posts." He suggests that at first the person will vehemently deny any accusation, but eventually the person will disappear from the group.

    And how should an Internet group deal with the aftermath of such a situation?

  • Some groups will ban the perpetrator and ban any further discussion of the individual and the general drama created.

  • Dr. Feldman says, "Remaining members may need to enlist help in processing their feelings, ending any bickering or blaming, and refocusing the group on its original laudable goal."

    • rm_mrb912010 32M
    Ask me for a photo
    23 posts
    2/15/2010 2:30 pm

    		 Wow interesting girl...


    rm_trainmepls1 53F
    717 posts
    2/15/2010 3:49 pm
      Quoting  :
    What happened in the end in that group? Was it ripped apart and divided into "suckers" and "insensitive douchebags"? How was it dealt with?


    rm_trainmepls1 53F
    717 posts
    2/17/2010 6:33 pm
      Quoting  :
    This is Trainme's sister's boyfriend. Don't ask me how I got into this blog. Trainme wants me to tell you that she has a terminal case of skepticism and insensitivedouchebagitis. She was hospitalized for it yesterday, and the doctor told her she only had a week to live! She doesn't believe the doctor, and she doesn't believe you about your hangnail either.


    rm_trainmepls1 53F
    717 posts
    2/17/2010 6:38 pm
      Quoting  :
    I'm not sure what's worse, being the one who's duped or being the one who sees the deception but can't convince anyone that they're being deceived.


    WiseFolly 59M
    1078 posts
    2/20/2010 8:03 am

    		 Great research, thanks!

    I remember been suckered into one of those back in the days of usenet (before the WWW). Ever since I'm sceptical of what I read in forums, and unless I know the person or a friend of that person myself, I just leave the whole topic alone.

    I didn't realize this was significant enough to be formally diagnosable. Wow. Is this going into the next DSM?
    If you directed my tongue to your pleasure then my it wouldn't be in my cheek .


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