There are many people who want to draw attention to them or be the focus of attention by others, and be socially acceptable, this is human nature, but the abnormal is the pathological obsession of drawing attention by behavior or external appearance. They feel unappreciated if they were not the center of attention so they resort to some socially unacceptable behavior, they often have personality disorder called hysterical personality.
What is hysterical or representative personality disorder:
Representation personality disorder is a disorder in which a person constantly seeks attention from others, feels distressed and uncomfortable when he is not the focus of attention, and to get attention he resorts to extraordinary behaviors, he cares excessively about the external appearance. Constantly seeking the attention of others and seeking to be at the center of any debate or gathering, this person is characterized by having excessive emotional thinking, which leads him to give emotional reactions to the situations he is exposed to. It can be said that his reactions reach the point of excessive emotion, in addition to his exaggeration in describing the situations he is exposed to, he also characterized by a lack of self-confidence. Therefore, he tries to make up for it by drawing the attention of others to him through strange behaviors such as dressing or speaking in a strange way.
Hysterical personality disorder symptoms:
Symptoms of representative or hysterical personality disorder are numerous, the most important being:
1. Focusing on the self and need to draw attention and feel discomfort if he isn’t the focus of attention in any session. 2. Constant striving to feel accepted by others. 3. Attempting to show eye-catching seductive behavior, clothing and using physical appearance to attract attention. 4. Intense emotion and rapid change of emotions. 5. They are influenced by the opinions of others very easily and the quick conviction of their views. 6. Their interest and talk are self-centered only. 7. Extreme sensitivity to criticism. 8. Wasting money and directing energies for people’s sake.
Causes of hysterical personality disorder:
The main cause of representation or hysterical personality disorder cannot be determined, but most of it is due to genetic and child-related factors. The main causes of this disorder are:
Genetic factors:
Genetics play a significant role in the formation of hysterical personality, such as a parent or relative with a representative personality disorder will increase the possibility for a family member to suffer from that disorder.
Social factors:
The causes of this disorder can be traced back to childhood such as the child’s exposure to erroneous methods of upbringing, the severe trauma of childhood and the entrenchment of the child’s subconscious and could not deal with it, such as depriving the child of her mother’s tenderness, or observing that his brothers enjoyed more love than he did, This prompts him to try to draw attention to the attention of others to compensate for his parents’ lack of interest in him, which leads to lack of self-confidence and a feeling of self-acceptance only after praising others in him.
Psychological factors:
As a result of internal conflict between instincts and desires with values and norms of a society that curbs desires, this leads to the use of defensive mechanisms to escape psychological conflict without realizing this.
Hysterical personality disorder treatment:
The first method of treatment is to convince the person with the disorder that he needs treatment and that this behavior is abnormal and needs special follow-up. Among the most common methods of treating a representative or Hysterical personality disorder are:
Psychotherapy:
Psychotherapy is the most common and successful in treating hysterical personality disorder. It aims to create a dialogue and debate with the troubled that enables him to recognize his illness by discussing his behaviors and the reality of his motivations for such behaviors, here the psychotherapist should guide the patient while talking about how to avoid dedicating all his efforts in attracting the attention of others and understanding the right ways to get close to others and establish healthy social relationships. In psychotherapy, psychiatrist learns about a person’s experiences and medical history, and talks with him about his feelings, his experiences, his thoughts, his view of life and others.
Medication Treatment:
The specialist psychiatrist prescribes certain medications to treat hysterical personality disorder or diseases that may accompany this disorder, such as depression or anxiety by identifying medications for them, these medications relieve the symptoms of this disorder.
You can contact Dr. Mona Reda for all psychological consultations for a more stable life.
