factitious disorder imposed on self
factitious disorder imposed on self is a mental health condition. a person with this condition pretends to be sick, makes themself sick, or injures themself to get attention. factitious disorder is sometimes called munchausen syndrome.
the person may:
- claim that they have symptoms, when none exist.
- produce false test results, such as by sticking a thermometer in hot water to mimic a fever or by putting bacteria or something else in laboratory test samples.
- self-inflict injuries, such as cutting the skin.
- create symptoms, such as causing vomiting by taking medicine.
- say that symptoms are worse than they really are, such as claiming to have severe pain or bleeding when a milder condition is actually present.
- request surgical procedures.
treatment primarily consists of counselling to prevent the affected person from further self-harm and to stop providing unnecessary and potentially harmful medical treatment.
current as of: june 24, 2023
author: healthwise staff
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