3 Strange Types Of Misidentification Syndrome With Delusion

The human mind remains a mystery to science. It is able to create the most impressive ideas, but also the most surprising nonsense. Misidentification syndrome with delusion are examples of this. These are distortions of the thought process that lead to the affected person having a distorted vision of reality.

One of the most important symptoms of delusions with delusion is delirium in the content of the thought. A delirium is a belief that the person considers true, even if it has no logical or empirical basis.

These  delusions or illusory beliefs are present in misidentification syndrome with delusion. They lead the person to have a completely wrong perception of themselves. Many times they are part of more complex psychiatric illnesses or neurological disorders. Let’s learn more:

Capgras delusion, a common type of misidentification syndrome with delusion

Capgra’s syndrome or Capgra’s delusion is a disorder that leads one to believe that one of the closest people in their life has been replaced by a deceiver. They think the person is a double. Their inability to recognize what is really real is what makes this a misidentification syndrome with delusion.

What happens in Capgras delusions is that the person is able to physically recognize a famous person, but the feeling of knowledge does not appear in their mind. It is a sensory perception with neither subjective sensations nor emotions.

In the case of this error , there is a disconnection between the visual recognition system and the affective memory. A person can also lead this delusion to himself. In that case, the person concerned believes that someone else is replacing them. This usually happens as part of a psychosis or as a result of a brain trauma.

Fregoli delusion

Another misidentification syndrome with delusion is Fregoli. This is related to paranoia and it appears in different ways. The most typical case is when a person thinks they have a pursuer and that they are able to assume different looks. When they see someone they know, they may think that it is actually their persecutor disguised as a person they know, with the intent to deceive them.

This delusion can manifest itself in a completely different way than the one above. The person thinks they know strangers; they see them with familiar faces. In the same way, they may think they know places or objects they do not really do.

Although science has not exactly discovered the causes of this, it is known that this delusion has to do with an error in associative memory. This would make a person unable to synchronize mental and physical perceptions. A brain injury can cause this; It can also appear as part of an episode of paranoid delirium.

Othello syndrome

Imagination can often be a big part of jealousy – many times it has more to do with imagination than reality. What it is is a constant suspicion, which seldom corresponds to facts or is verified. In the case of Othello syndrome, this is brought to the highest level possible.

A person who has this syndrome has a strong belief that their partner is unfaithful. They are completely safe and they just want to “take them in action”. What makes this a misidentification syndrome with delusion is that the person affected cannot see (or identify) the partner as they really are. They just see them as a traitor. This makes the person invest a lot of time and energy in trying to prove their infidelity.

A characteristic of Othello syndrome is that the person can permanently feel the presence of a third party in their relationship. But when someone asks them what this person looks like, they have nothing to say. They only point to certain facts about them in rare cases.

These are not the only misidentification syndromes with delusions, there are others out there. The common factor between them all is difficulty recognizing themselves and others. These syndromes are almost always associated with severe psychiatric pathologies. Therefore, they require professional treatment.