The 8 effects of mythomania on couple relationships.

These are the ways in which compulsive lying affects romantic relationships.

Have you ever heard of mythomania? It is a pathological disorder whose main symptom is the tendency to fabulate, to transform reality or, in short, to lie compulsively.

In couple relationships, this disorder, suffered by one of the two members of the relationship, can have very negative consequences, involving suffering and discomfort (especially for the partner of the mythomaniac).

In this article, in addition to explaining in more detail what this disorder consists of, we will know 6 effects of the mythomania in the couple relationships..

What is mythomania?

Before delving into the effects of mythomania on relationships, let's define what mythomania is. Mythomania (also called pathological lying or fantastic pseudology) consists of a behavior characterized by recurrent and compulsive lies..

Generally, this type of lies (which are quite implausible, although they can be believed, as we will see below), bring some kind of advantage or benefit to the person who tells them (e.g. attention, money, company, etc.).

The term mythomania was first described in the medical literature by the German psychiatrist Anton Delbrueck in 1989, and was later used by the French psychiatrist Ernest Dupré.

Although it is a controversial (and very complex) concept, the truth is that many experts in the field consider that in mythomania the invention of stories occurs unconsciously, and furthermore, such stories are usually not very plausible and therefore easy to refute. However, there are mythomaniacs who can lie intentionally..

According to studies, in terms of prevalence, mythomania affects men and women equally.

Characteristics of mythomania

As we saw, in mythomania, the invented events are usually not very credible events, that is, unlikely. This is so because they are often stories that, although not true, have some real, true detail..

On the other hand, they are very formulated lies, which leads one to think that the mythomaniac person thinks a lot about all the probabilities of the event when explaining it, as well as its circumstances, contextual characteristics, etc.

It should be clear that the lies of the mythomaniac are neither delusions nor another possible symptom of psychosis.. On the other hand, mythomaniacs can tell the truth if they are put under a lot of pressure.

Why does it happen?

Why do mythomaniacs lie? To begin with, it should be clarified that their tendency to tell lies is usually chronic or, at least, very long-lasting in time..

Moreover, lying is not caused by any social pressure or immediate trigger, but rather by a type of personality disturbance (e.g. histrionic personality disorder), coupled with high insecurity, low self-esteem and/or need for attention.

Through lies, Mythomaniacs often tell stories that leave them in a good position, or that make people of their own age feel that they are in a good position.They may also tell stories that make the people around them pay much more attention to them (because they claim to be seriously ill, for example).

Now, going into the love field, let's see what can be the effects of mythomania on relationships.

The effects of mythomania on couple's love relationships

What happens when one of the partners is a mythomaniac? The effects of mythomania on relationships can be very diverse, although what is clear is that the relationship can (and usually does) result highly detrimental. Here we have collected some of these effects:

1. Conflicts and misunderstandings 2.

The first effect of mythomania, whether or not within a couple's relationship, is the appearance of conflicts. This occurs for several reasons; first of all, that lies are usually discovered sooner or later (as the saying goes, "they are discovered sooner or later"). (as the saying goes "you catch a liar before you catch a lame man"), which ends up generating distrust in the couple.

On the other hand, the stories explained that are not true, can cause certain misunderstandings or confusion in the relationship, because after all they are implausible stories, which can make the person who hears them think that his partner is not really well, that he is confused, or may not even understand why to do that.

2. Mistrust

Another effect of mythomania on relationships is, logically, the aforementioned distrust.

When we meet someone, and especially at the beginning, trust is essential; if they lie to us from the beginning and we discover it, the relationship will start to be built on mistrust, which can be fatal, creating insecurities in one of the partners, making him/her suffer, not believing in the relationship, etc.

3. Legal problems

If the problem of the mythomaniac is serious, there may even appear legal problems that directly affect the couple. This can derive from multiple situations where the lie is the protagonist.

This type of problems can arise, for example, with a lie that little by little has become bigger.

4. Dissatisfaction and discomfort

Mythomania also often triggers a significant sense of dissatisfaction and discomfort in the couple (i.e., in both partners).

This originates because in the end, depending on the severity and frequency of the lies, the relationship (and the life of the mythomaniac) is being built on the lie.Therefore, it is not an honest and sincere relationship. Thus, people who maintain a relationship with a mythomaniac can suffer a lot.

5. Guilt

The next of the effects of mythomania in couple relationships is guilt in the partner of the mythomaniac. As the mythomaniac often tells stories where he/she appears as a victim, this can end up triggering a feeling of guilt in the partner, logically related to the type of stories he/she hears from his/her partner.

In addition, it is common for the stories to be more and more the stories are often more and more elaborate and more and more serious.The direct effects may also be aggravated.

6. Rupture

Finally, the last of the possible effects of mythomania in couple relationships to highlight is breakup (derived, in turn, from other points already mentioned).

The rupture can appear for various reasons: because the partner discovers the pathological lies of his/her partner, because he/she does not understand his/her behavior, because he/she feels betrayed, etc.