Erotomania or obsession with a fictitious love: what it is, symptoms, causes and treatment

Erotomania is one of the main mental health disorders that afflicts several people. In general, it is a clinical condition that focuses on a state of excessive infatuation without foundations. This has the effect of the presence of extremely harmful thoughts, emotions and behaviors, both for the family and social environment. Over time, special emphasis has been placed on the need to carry out a thorough study about the mental conditions of people who show interest in others in a way uncontrollable. This condition brings intense suffering. Likewise, people who experience these situations can suffer high levels of frustration when they are not emotionally reciprocated. .

In this Psychology-Online article, we will provide you with information about the Erotomania or obsession with a fictitious love: what it is, symptoms, causes and treatment.

Index

1. What is erotomania or erotomaniac delirium?
2. Symptoms of erotomania or erotomanic delirium
3. Causes of erotomania or erotomanic delirium
4. Treatment of erotomania

Erotomania or erotomanic delirium is a mental health disorder characterized by certainty that a person is in love of who suffers from the condition. In other words, in this clinical picture a delusion occurs related to the fact that someone is completely in love with the person with this diagnosis.

In this sense, it is important to clarify that it is an excessive feeling of greatness because the person believes that they have the necessary conditions to generate falling in love. Although there is no accurate data about reality that serves as the basis for this situation, this mental disorder makes the interpretation of life events delusional.

Diagnostic criteria for erotomania

According to the DSM-V^[1], this clinical condition can be placed within the delusional disorders contemplated in the manual. Next, we will set out the diagnostic criteria that must be met:

• Presence of delusional ideas.
• The criteria for the diagnosis of schizophrenia (hallucinations) are not met.
• Few and/or brief depressive episodes.
• Deterioration of social, work and family relationships.
• Duration of a month or more.
• The mental disorder cannot be explained by the ingestion of toxic substances, medications and/or other clinical conditions.

In order to define the physical, emotional and behavioral manifestations of this clinical picture, it is necessary to know some relevant data. In this section we will mention the symptoms of erotomania:

• Certainty of falling in love with another person.
• Delusional ideas.
• Hallucinations (in some cases).
• High self-esteem.
• Social isolation.
• Insistence on meeting the person.
• Rejection of reality.

Despite this description, it should be noted that the isolated presence of any of these symptoms does not necessarily correspond to a picture of erotomania. In this sense, the diagnosis must be made by a specialized mental health professional.

In order to develop strategies that allow an improvement in the quality of life, it is necessary to take into consideration the origins of this problem. In the next items, we will develop the most frequent causes of erotomania:

Environmental factors

having suffered traumatic experiences in childhood It has a significant impact on personality. This includes sexual abuse, child abuse, physical and verbal violence, among others. In this way, erotomania is presented as a defense mechanism against a reality that has been painful.

Organic factors

On the other hand, it is possible that there are certain genetic alterations that impact the functioning of the central nervous system. Given this, the perception of information coming from external stimuli can be distorted and cause an obsession with a fictitious love. At the same time, an excessive activity of certain neurotransmitters related to the dopamine.

Despite the complexities that this diagnosis raises, there are ways to treat it. In the following paragraphs, we will show some treatments for erotomania:

Psychological therapy

Therapy consists of a space that invites reflection on personal aspects and construction of tools to cope with life in a more enjoyable way. On the one hand, the brief therapies They address the emotions, thoughts and behaviors that cause the symptoms of erotomania. In this way, the person can adopt other alternatives that improve their quality of life and avoid interpersonal conflicts.

On the other hand, the long-term therapies They emphasize the memory of childhood situations that are related to current problems. Consequently, the person who suffers from this disorder can consider another perspective regarding this situation.

Psychiatric medication

If the patient presents serious difficulties in the development of his life and represents a danger to himself and others, the provision of anxiolytics is a viable option. In short, medication produces changes in the neural connections of the central nervous system. However, this should be supervised by a mental health professional.

On the other hand, the treatment of erotomania generally requires a continuous care and monitoring by a mental health professional. This is important to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment and make adjustments as necessary.

In situations where the person with erotomania presents a risk to themselves or others, or if the illness is serious and is significantly interfering with your daily functioning, it may be necessary the hospitalization for more intensive evaluation and treatment.

Social support and education

Providing support to the affected person and educating family and loved ones about the disorder can be crucial. This can help create an environment of Support and understanding and can help the affected person feel less isolated and more supported during their treatment and recovery process.

This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Erotomania or obsession with a fictitious love: what it is, symptoms, causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.

1. American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th edition). Arlington: Panamericana Medical Publishing.

• Herrera Giménez, M., Llor Moreno, C. (2018). Erotomania or Clérambault Syndrome: about a case. Northern Mental Health Magazine, 15 (58), 65-68.
• López-Andrade, L.M. (2009). Erotomania, love and infatuation. Contradictions. Journal of the Spanish Association of Neuropsychiatry, 29 (103), 157-169.