🤝 Community Munchausen's by Internet (Malingerers, Munchies, Spoonies, etc) - Feigning Illnesses for Attention

[Flourishing Pinecone ❧]

It'd probably be a lot easier and a whole lot less amazing if she adjusted the seat forwards and turned down the resistance.

oh my god haha why the fuck is the seat back so far? she's so bizarre

 

[Catmannjew]

@ZB927 can not quote you. But no one knew about Chadwick Boseman and he got a lot of shit because of this.
In fact on Da 5 bloods there were comments from other actors because he would have treatment, so he was in his trailer a lot when not filming. There was some resentment over this.
Then he died and it clicked.
A lot of people why he kept doing black panther promotion, made fun of his appearance, and weight loss at the end of his life. Again, he died and people took back everything they said.

 

[Allo Vera]

I know Evie Meg has featured on this thread before and the consensus was that she was for real. I was never too convinced myself (I think the “seizures” and the wrist contracture saga were too unconvincing) and I’m now VERY surprised to see that she’s eased up on the Tourette’s identity (seems she never actually had a diagnosis even though it was her MO) in favour of the autoimmune/PANDAS bandwagon.

Did this article sound the death knell for fake Tiktok Tourette’s? I loved the fact that “Evie’s” became shorthand amongst doctors when it came to sudden onset tics in teenage girls:

The Twitching Generation

Around the world, doctors have noticed teenage patients reporting the sudden onset of tics. Is this the first illness spread by social media?

www.theatlantic.com

PANDAS does seem quite trendy right now, I’ve seen plenty of autism-moms-in-denial say their kids aren’t autistic, it’s totally PANDAS.
I’d love to know what the munchie experts on this thread think of Evie’s latest diagnosis and whether we’re going to see it appearing more and more in spoonie adults - even though the P stands for pediatric…

 

[Thomas Eugene Paris]

I don't remember her being posted here, but yeah, I'm comfortable calling her a munchie. Is she wearing a panda costume to talk about her PANDAS?

PANDAS is itself a controversial entity, much touted by "functional medicine specialists", and some experts remain highly skeptical.

 

[std::string]

PANDAS is itself a controversial entity, much touted by "functional medicine specialists", and some experts remain highly skeptical.

I'd just chalk it up to another new psychogenic illness, which unfortunately do suck for the people that have them.

Weird sequelae after an acute infection aren't really anything new but you can't exactly spread those via TikTok, but you certainly can spread psychogenic illness.

Things like that one high school where all the cheerleaders suddenly developed tics with no apparent cause.

 

[Allo Vera]

I don't remember her being posted here, but yeah, I'm comfortable calling her a munchie. Is she wearing a panda costume to talk about her PANDAS?

PANDAS is itself a controversial entity, much touted by "functional medicine specialists", and some experts remain highly skeptical.

Maybe I’m misremembering, but I’m sure I searched the Farms for discussion of what an obvious munchie this girl is and found someone saying she seemed legit - which was a surprise to me. She seems like a fairly classic munchie with a classically enabling mother, who happily films her “seizures” (FND not epilepsy) and “tic attacks” (not Tourette’s). Also uses crutches and a wheelchair because… who knows why.

Tell me more about PANDAS. I know nothing of it apart from the fact it sounds extremely suss and a rather implausible explanation for such a wide range of symptoms.

 

[Moby Dork]

Maybe I’m misremembering, but I’m sure I searched the Farms for discussion of what an obvious munchie this girl is and found someone saying she seemed legit - which was a surprise to me. She seems like a fairly classic munchie with a classically enabling mother, who happily films her “seizures” (FND not epilepsy) and “tic attacks” (not Tourette’s). Also uses crutches and a wheelchair because… who knows why.

Tell me more about PANDAS. I know nothing of it apart from the fact it sounds extremely suss and a rather implausible explanation for such a wide range of symptoms.

There's a girl named Quinn (in the UK, I think) who claimed Tourettes and seizures, and says she's bed bound (except when she's at Tesco's buying candy apples with worms in them, or "training" her "service dog").

She also punches giant holes in walls, stalks local TikTok'rs, dates underage girls, and allegedly once tried to kill her own mother.

None of these things are her fault, of course. It's all caused by giant black and white bamboo-loving bears in China. Obviously.

PANDAS is the newest fake sick craze.

 

[bliblblblbbllb]

I always had the impression PANDAS was about young, like preschool-elementary age children that have a major change in personality or ability after a major infection or autoimmune disorder. A nicer way to say "your kid got his eggs scrambled a little, his brain cooked a bit." Like, after pnemonia and 5 days in hospital, Little 8 year old Johnny starts having severe anger fits at school, wetting the bed, and falls behind in school. Nothing to do with pnemonia, but also very sudden change that happened right along recovery.

If you ask me similar things happen to adults with stuff like post-concussion syndrome, lasting joint damage from lyme disease, or, one that's been made popular lately, long covid.
The difference: Adults brains just aren't still cooking like a kid's. You might just feel less able to focus for long periods of time ("brain fog"), while a 10 year old instead has noticable sudden delays, regression, or behavior issues.

PANDAS kinda makes sense for Evie as a cover story if a legit illness set off her munching spree, but I wouldn't be surprised if she says her PANDAS-inducing event was one of her fake seizures or an EDS 'dislocation' or something highly improbable- even a suicide attempt or half-hearted OD.

It is probably easier to accept (for everyone involved) that Evie had a random physical event kick off her crazy and she can't help it, rather than that she grew to the age where personality disorders really bubble up.

Magical daydream moment:

Spoiler

The issue is that they're entertaining her fantasical identity and "quirky always-sick BPD girl" REALLY doesn't age well. A really good DBT (not CBT) therapist to slowly untangle that mess, and strong motivational interviewing: repeated encouragement that she should get a job, develop independence, value not being a crazy gurl.... including involving the family, that would be a magically ideal plan of action.

For anyone who wonders "Can you fix that?" You can... but almost all personality disordered people don't want to change so... don't get burnt-out when you force the horse to the water but it won't drink.

Anna the perpetually sliding into relapse orthorexic princess is a wonderful case study for someone who kinda tries but it never really sticks or stays better long term.

 

[Thomas Eugene Paris]

For anyone who wonders "Can you fix that?" You can... but almost all personality disordered people don't want to change so... don't get burnt-out when you force the horse to the water but it won't drink.

Most people with a personality disorder lack the self-insight to realize that they have a problem. Any attempts to convince them that they are psychologically unwell are interpreted as completely unfounded persecution. The result is that the more the people around them try to force them into treatment, the harder they dig in and refuse. They'll never seek treatment on their own because they don't see their own behavior as problematic.

It's the lack of insight that makes many people with personality disorders mostly untreatable. They cannot be convinced that they, not everyone else, are the problem.

 

[std::string]

It's the lack of insight that makes many people with personality disorders mostly untreatable. They cannot be convinced that they, not everyone else, are the problem.

You can imagine how well DBT goes down with people who already think the entire medical profession is out to get them.

FDIOS still seems to be completely untreatable.

 

[Thomas Eugene Paris]

You can imagine how well DBT goes down with people who already think the entire medical profession is out to get them.

FDIOS still seems to be completely untreatable.

"DBT?! You mean that therapy for people with borderline personality disorder? HOW DARE YOU CONTRIBUTE TO MY cPTSD WITH SUCH A SUGGESTION!!!!!"

 

[Flourishing Pinecone ❧]

It's the lack of insight that makes many people with personality disorders mostly untreatable.

I would argue this depends on the PD. For example Antisocial would certainly never initiate or even want to engage in treatment, but those in cluster C (sad) would be more receptive. It also depends on the severity and if you're bad enough to get the attention of health professionals.

Anyway my hot take is that everyone should go to talking therapy because we are all fucked in the head in some way or another thank you.

 

[A tree]

Creepy granny/Ddlg munchie Rose has somehow managed to pull off an elective cosmetic tracheostomy to replace that old CPAP machine she was wearing that wasn't even running most of the time. No me neither.



This girl was diagnosed with FND on her old account before she DFE'd and now claims stiff person syndrome and respiratory failure none of which would require a leap from a CPAP to a tracheostomy. There was nothing obstructing her airway.

 

[TheBigZee]

Creepy granny/Ddlg munchie Rose has somehow managed to pull off an elective cosmetic tracheostomy to replace that old CPAP machine she was wearing that wasn't even running most of the time. No me neither.


This girl was diagnosed with FND on her old account before she DFE'd and now claims stiff person syndrome and respiratory failure none of which would require a leap from a CPAP to a tracheostomy. There was nothing obstructing her airway.

It looks real, so how?

 

[A tree]

It looks real, so how?

Some absolute charlatan of a doctor, enabling family to the point of MBP? Money?
It's got to be malpractice of some kind but she is very light on details.

 

[Maskull]

I work with a munchie that's pretending to be mute right now. It's been a month and will continue for at least a month more, or until she gets "scoped." She's mentioned Ehlers-Danlos in the past which sent up the earliest red flag and I've been scrutinizing her for this nonsense for almost eight months ever since she offhandedly said she might go on testosterone.

It's becoming intolerable. How do I deal with this bullshit?

 

[A tree]

I work with a munchie that's pretending to be mute right now. It's been a month and will continue for at least a month more, or until she gets "scoped." She's mentioned Ehlers-Danlos in the past which sent up the earliest red flag and I've been scrutinizing her for this nonsense for almost eight months ever since she offhandedly said she might go on testosterone.

It's becoming intolerable. How do I deal with this bullshit?

Post milk or GTFO this isn't a support group.

 

[Flourishing Pinecone ❧]

Can't believe Rose got her trache. She's a moron, they're so much work and so gross . If she has to keep the cuff up while it's healing, she won't be able to talk without a speech valve, which also means not being connected to any CPAP. Which will just illustrate she never really needed it.

Getting a trache for CPAP/BiPAP whatever is usually because either you can't safely maintain an airway (not her) or you're not able to ventilate well with just non-invasive ventilation because you need higher pressures/support (eg. something progressive like

(Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, it's been a little while since I've looked after new traches).

 

[A tree]

Can't believe Rose got her trache. She's a moron, they're so much work and so gross . If she has to keep the cuff up while it's healing, she won't be able to talk without a speech valve, which also means not being connected to any CPAP. Which will just illustrate she never really needed it.

Getting a trache for CPAP/BiPAP whatever is usually because either you can't safely maintain an airway (not her) or you're not able to ventilate well with just non-invasive ventilation because you need higher pressures/support (eg. something progressive like
(Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, it's been a little while since I've looked after new traches).

Rose explicitly chose a tracheostomy becsue she didn't like the look of the nose hose which she also admitted she chose for its aesthetic.

 

[Allo Vera]

More Evie stuff. She really seems to be ramping up the PANDAS identity. No one has really heard of it, so now that she can’t get away with being the poster girl for TikTok Tourette’s, she seems to be angling to be TikTok’s #1 PANDAS advocate.



Doing a slow, ambling walk towards the camera, feet dragging and turned inwards. Bonus bent wrist. If you’ve ever seen the movie Shaun of the Dead, she looked a bit like one of the zombies in that.



Making sure everyone can see how severe her wrist contracture is. Using the phrase “lucky fin” is particularly bizarre because I’ve only ever seen it used over the years by parents of little kids born with limb differences. It’s cute. Let’s face it, kids with missing limbs/deformed limbs are going to have to deal with a ton of shit in their lives. Let them have their cute little name. But no, Evie is co-opting that.

When Evie isn’t walking like a zombie, washing her lucky fin and being pushed in a wheelchair like a proper invalid



She likes to do this



Apparently PANDAS is indistinguishable from any other munchie affliction: it comes in “flares”. How convenient! You can carry on your previous munching (with Tourette’s, with FND) using the same language as before!



Comments are interesting: you got this! Kick PANDAS ass! That kind of thing. One asking how you can tell the difference between PANDAS and FND (Evie would say very little difference, doctors might say otherwise). More than one (female) saying “I have PANDAS too”.

A new munchie epidemic might be on the way.