Compulsive lying is a serious problem that can ruin a person's life and that can take many forms. If you are a compulsive liar then this can mean lying in all kinds of situations and about all kinds of things. You might for instance find yourself lying in small ways - for instance giving the wrong name when speaking to members of authority, or lying about where you've been to your friends and relatives and partners. Many people will make up facts about themselves in an attempt to impress, or will make up 'facts' and tell others again in a bid to demonstrate knowledge and to win friends. In more serious situations compulsive lying can be more destructive and it can mean lying about your profession, lying to doctors, or lying to those closest to you about things that really matter. At this point it is possible to put your careers and your relationships in jeopardy and you can even find yourself in legal trouble - this is where it becomes necessary to seek help and to overcome your problems so that you can function without lying as a part of your life.
Lying to a degree is normal and we all do it. For instance there are the very harmless and in fact positive lies that we make in order to protect the feelings of others. The old favorite is when a wife or girlfriend asks 'does my bum look big in this?' and we all know that the answer here is 'no' regardless of the reality. Likewise we might lie a little for personal gain, and to an extent this is normal and healthy. We might make up an excuse not to go out, or we might bend the truth on our CV in order to get a job interview. Any of this is normal, and nothing to be too alarmed about.
However as this grows further - as we start lying to impress or to 'cheat' the system things start to get out of hand. Many people who lie in order to impress others for instance would be alarmed to learn that for the most part their efforts are futile and wasted - more often or not such lies are transparent and actually the end up making us look foolish and embarrassing ourselves rather than helping us to impress in the way we want to. Further if we lie to cheat then it's only so long until we get caught.
There are many reasons people lie. One might be that they are almost 'addicted' to the thrill of lying and seeing if they can get away with it. Just as some people steel for the 'challenge' and other people might sky dive. Another is that the person feels inadequate and feels that the 'truth' will be disappointing to most audiences. In other cases lying can simply become a habit and a person can talk themselves into doing it.
Counseling can help a person to recognize the problem and to get it back under control, by raising their self-esteem and teaching tricks and cognitive restructuring to help them address situations in a more positive manner.
I have recently experienced the damage that can be done by compulsive lying. My cousin was crazy with the things she came up with. In the end her parents took her to see this counselling Melbourne service.
No comments:
Post a Comment