Lying Frequently And With Little Control: What’s Behind It?

Mythomania is a complex concept. Under this umbrella would be found all those people who lie in a compulsive way ; that is, frequently and with little or no control.

Surely you have heard at some point that saying that says ” lies more than speaks ” to indicate a person who frequently uses lies to achieve their purpose. The truth is that, beyond the cliché, when this way of acting occurs on a recurring basis it becomes a problem.

What characterizes mythomania?

If you were asked how often you lie, what would your answer be? All people, at some point, choose the lie as an instrument to achieve a purpose, whether for their own benefit, the other or the community. However, this can be a problem when it stops becoming isolated lies and becomes a habit in our daily lives.

Although, as such, the fact of lying frequently is not considered a disease, it is binding on the behaviors of certain disorders related to mental health, such as borderline personality disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder or eating disorder . It would also be closely linked to substance use.

People who are subscribed to lying frequently are aware that they are missing the truth, that they are playing with a parallel or tangential story. However, their self-control is less than the intensity or power acquired by the temptation to use them.

On the other hand, it is important to point out that although they are aware of the derivation of their story, on many occasions, by dint of repeating it or using it, they come, in their brain, to merge it with reality.

Key personalities where there are more cases

As indicated above, they are people who usually fantasize a lot about reality and this leads them to work with a parallel reality with the sole purpose of impressing or generating admiration in other people.

They are usually people with low self-esteem and with few social skills who need this “help” to accept a part of their lives.

On the other hand, the eventual – lying – usually gradually becomes a habit. This progression, far from making the person feel better, tends to sink them little by little without their environment understanding why.

Their basal anxiety level is usually high, since they have to be alert to mislead anyone who is close to the truth. This leads them to have thoughts that encourage them to lie frequently as a solution to all their problems; a temptation they can hardly resist.

However, these characteristics are the most common, but they do not have to be binding to identify a mythomania.

Causes that lead to frequent lying

The causes that lead to mythomania are mostly related to profiles. However, these are some of the most prominent causes :

• They are people dissatisfied with the life they have or with some aspect of their lives.
• They think their life is better because of their lies.
• Generated by mental health disorders.
• They need in a pathological way to have all kinds of attention, admiration and affection from other people. They do not accept to go unnoticed.

• Low self-esteem.
• Poorly managed emotional problems.

However, they are victims of themselves since they cannot control lying compulsively.

Consequences

The main consequences of mythomania are:

• The lie as something necessary. They are people who when they end up turning lying into something common in their day to day. However, they cannot control it and it ends up becoming addictive.
• Loss of notion of reality. Although at all times they are aware of their lies, they end up generating a parallel world.
• Lack of trust. Undoubtedly, the main consequence that is generated in the environment of these people. If a person is lying compulsively and the environment has been aware on several occasions, it is most likely that a lack of confidence develops in the things that he tells and everything is little in doubt. This, in turn, can generate some anger in the mythomaniac person, generating a certain climate of tension.

How to control it?

They are people who are satisfied not to be discovered. This type of behavior makes them feel more important. However, when a certain spiral of lies begins, which are difficult to maintain, they begin to experience anguish and, in many cases, this is binding to ask for help.

Compulsive lying has a treatment and the first step is to assume this type of behavior. It would be a loss for the person who suffers this type of behavior, to go to a specialist and continue lying about their own reality.

It is very important that the person is completely honest with the person who is going to help him and, for that, the first and most important step is to take on the problem.

Mythomania is a behavior that a person can recover from with various therapy sessions. These sessions will work from self-esteem, social skills or impulse control.