Imposter syndrome OCD

[Leah88]

I only just remembered a phase of my life when I was about 7 and thought my dad was an imposter. I've since read it's a branch of OCD. ( usually related to a brain injury) Great!... anyway, has anyone else ever experienced this or am I the only one?

[MyNameIsTerry]

There is "false memory OCD" but that's different to what you describe. Not sure about this being a branch of OCD, where did you come across it? (always useful to find out more, it's such a broad disorder!!!) OCD can take pretty much anything as a worry.

The brain injury part wouldn't relate to OCD though other than under a HA theme within it i.e. fearing it being a brain tumour.

It's possible to experience these thoughts when suffering DR though, a common anxiety symptom. Others on here have discussed thinking their family aren't real, are aliens or robots, etc.

[Leah88]

I think it's actually called capgrass delusion.

---------- Post added at 15:20 ---------- Previous post was at 15:15 ----------

Ok now I've really panicked myself as it says capgrass syndrome is linked to early Parkinson's and I have tremors both internal and external.

Help

[MyNameIsTerry]

Ok, I could give you an example of someone suffering from this that was in the media in recent months. This person wouldn't be on here asking about it, if she were she may have been stopped from what she actually did to someone.

Delusions are held as 100% unshakeable beliefs. A common example used to display how delusional disorders appear is the 3rd arm example. The patient will sit arguing with a doctor they actually do have a 3rd arm. No matter what the doctor says or shows them, they won't believe him.

These types of episodes are experienced in more serious mental health conditions, like schizophrenia, and Capgras Delusion is one in Paranoid Schizophrenia. Delusions can be experienced in other organic disorders, such as dementia or brain damage, because of what is/has happened to a certain area of the brain.

So, are you experiencing delusion? A condition where you would be telling me you totally believe your dad is an imposter of some kind? Or are you doubting he is, which falls straight into DR territory as you have the capability of rational decision making.

Think of psychosis. How different is that to someone who thinks they are going mad on here because their anxiety is crippling them? Psychosis takes you over, so does delusion. There's a reason people suffering from these conditions are more likely reported to a doctor by family or friends and why these people need inpatient care until meds help them out.

And you are talking about experiencing it as a 7 year old and linking it to your adult life because you have symptoms that could be perceived to join up.

Many of us had imaginery friends as kids. It's no big deal. Having one as an adult is a different story though and a red flag.

No connection to OCD as far as I know, delusions are into bipolar episodes, delusional disorders, schizophrenia, etc. But that doesn't mean you are experiencing these either, not at all!

[Leah88]

But if OCD is a spectrum disorder, and statistically a lot of schizophrenics had OCD as a precursor, then wouldn't delusions overlap?.. especially as the neural pathway assoc with OCD is also assoc with bipolar?... I don't think he's an imposter anymore but I'm wondering if it was a somatization situation caused by degeneration of the brain..

[MyNameIsTerry]

Only where the person has developed a disorder that includes delusions so it would have to be a case of OCD + something else like schizophrenia. But why would there by schizophrenia showing at age 7 and then nothing? Where's the link? Why would degeneration of the brain be doing nothing but developing until now?

And statistics don't imply causation. How many OCDers don't have schizophrenia? A bet you it's a hell of a lot more. How many schizophrenics don't have OCD?

[pulisa]

Children think all sorts of things. It's normal. Please stop all this "reading", Leah.

[Lola-Lee]

In my teens I thought both my parents were imposters, typical behaviour growing up.I am sure most of us wished they were.

[pulisa]

Alarming how the OCD umbrella can expand to cover normal behaviours according to which article you read/professional you consult.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Alarming how the OCD umbrella can expand to cover normal behaviours according to which article you read/professional you consult.

With OCD being an abnormal level of normal behaviours it can be tempting for them I guess.

There is no link to Capgras & OCD though. It's no more linked than someone with a cold & Capgras. Whilst similiar brain regions are found in both Schizophrenia & OCD, they have also found distinct ones not in each other therefore it's not a case of they come together. But then they still don't know so there is a lot of speculation that HAers need to be very careful with.

I'm sure you saw the case of Capgras I mentioned earlier as it was in the news very recently. That's as far away from OCD as you can get, albeit it being a more extreme case, but it does demonstrate the power of delusion compared to obsession.

There is speculation that there are OCDers "with poor insight" which comes out of the DSM that has a spectrum but WHO don't have a spectrum so we have a world organisation & a US organisation in dispute with each other. So, neither can be said to be true until they decide who is right. Poor insight is very tricky anyway as there are all the other potential mental health problems where that can be a feature so who's to say they aren't involved?

I think Leah needs to be very careful what she reads here. From what I've seen of her posts she is into the really technical stuff that anyone below a consultant is going to struggle to answer. This brings in all the disputes between older experts & new ones, differencies between DSM & ICD, and all the other "speculation" on the internet by doctors that hasn't influenced anything and just been seen a possibility yet unproven.

[pulisa]

The dangers of "dabbling" in medical areas in which we have no professional training or expertise..Best left to those who have devoted years of their life to intensive specialised study and research. Dynamite for the OCD-afflicted.