Mentiras sinceras me interessam: a Pseudologia Fantástica na prática clínica
Mentiras sinceras me interessam: a Pseudologia Fantástica na prática clínica
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.73524131112
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Palavras-chave: pseudologia fantastica; mitomania; mentira patológica
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Keywords: fantastic pseudology; mythomania; pathological lie
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Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Pseudologia fantastica - also called mythomania - was previously obtained and conceived by Delbruek in 1981. Although there is no well- established definition, there are some characteristics that stand out, including the lack of a clear objective in the narrative, the protagonism of the narrator as victim or hero, in search of admiration; and fanciful, related and fantastic stories. It is sometimes difficult to differentiate mythomania from simulation or factitious disorders, but in the case of pseudologists, such stories are disproportionate to obvious external rewards and are also about a range of themes - far beyond illness or physical symptoms. OBJECTIVE: Pseudologia fantastica is a nosological entity that has been little reported in the literature, in addition, it is not included in classification systems such as DSM-V and ICD-10. This report aims to describe a case of Pseudologia fantastica to assist in the recognition and, consequently, its diagnosis. CASE REPORT: T.O.S., female, 21 years old, admitted to a psychiatric hospital with visual and auditory hallucinations characterized by crying children, said she saw her grandfather (already deceased) who gave commands to the patient to try to kill herself. There were reports of several suicide attempts and difficulty in handling anger (breaking objects, going out at random). The patient's narrative was fanciful, and the story was always incremented with each new interviewer, always with more detail. She spent a good part of the internment sleeping under the bed, because according to her, she was saving space for her grandfather, great- grandmother and son. History of sexual abuse practiced by her uncle at age 13, she had an abortion at the same time. Conflicted family environment. In the previous pathological history, history of convulsive crisis, poorly characterized, which also raised the hypothesis of convulsive pseudoseizures. Less than a month after discharge, she was seen at the Emergency Room with hemiplegia and right ptosis. A cranial resonance was performed, with no changes. Physical examination was inconsistent with neurological involvement, there was Hoover's sign present and the patient had a la belle indifference posture, having been discharged and referred to a Psychiatrist in our service. The patient did not return to the egress outpatient clinic and we were unable to follow up on the case. CONCLUSION: Mythomania is a rare case, but it causes harm to the patient and to those around him. It is necessary to differentiate it from factitious disorder or simulation in order to understand that, instead of a “liar”, the pseudologist is someone who uses the fantastic narrative as a primitive defense mechanism, interweaving reality with his self-aggrandizing fantasies; often to face their situation of helplessness, depression and suicidal thoughts.
- Katiene Rodrigues Menezes de Azevedo
- Samilla Sousa Macedo