What is Erotomania?
Erotomania is a psychiatric disorder that is considered in the group of delusional disorders.
In erotomania, the person is usually in the thought that a person who is in a higher position or in a more difficult to reach position than him/herself is in love with him/her or is having a relationship with him/her. This person may be someone they work with at work, a stranger they see on the street or a famous person. This situation is at a level that cannot be refuted by discussing with the person and cannot be convinced with logical explanations. The person defends this situation systematically.
In erotomania, he/she can always find explanations to confirm this delusion and the delusions he/she experiences. For example; he does not come near me because he does not want to be heard, he is waiting for the right time. From time to time, it can be observed that people do not show any other symptoms other than this area and their functionality is not impaired.
Is There an Underlying Psychiatric Disease Underlying Erotomania?
Erotomania is a disorder within psychotic disorders. However, in bipolar mood disorders, we may encounter erotomanic delusions during attacks. For example; a patient in a manic episode may believe that an artist is in love with him, that he wrote a song for him, that the sentence he uttered in a TV program is actually a message to him.
Who is at Risk for Erotomania?
Erotomania is likely to be seen as a symptom in people who already have psychiatric diagnoses such as bipolar mood disorder, psychotic disorder, delusional disorder. Similar pictures can be observed in some personality disorders.
Can Erotomania be treated?
Erotomania is often taken under control with psychopharmacotherapy (drug treatment) and psychotherapy process progressing simultaneously. It is of great importance to develop a personalized treatment protocol and for the treatment team to continue multidisciplinary treatment together. Additional treatments can also be applied to the person if evaluated by the psychiatrist and deemed necessary. In the case of another psychiatric disorder accompanying erotomania, such as bipolar disorder, the course and response to treatment may vary. In such a case, the person should not be disapproved of and at the same time this issue should not be discussed with the person. It is necessary to refer the person to a specialist and get expert support.
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