seems relevant

Munchausen by Internet (a.k.a. The Sob Story Teller)


These are the people who lurk around innocently enough, and then, one day, tragedy strikes. Their dog, or parent, or maybe a close friend died. Maybe the poster themselves found out they have a terminal disease. And unless you're on 4chan, the group will generally rally around and shower them with sympathy. You send this person your prayers and well wishes, maybe a few dozen kitten pictures and you hope they will get through it.

Then, a few months later, another tragedy strikes them. Their best friend was raped, or paralyzed in an accident, or both. A few months after that, their father dies. Again.


"I can't wait to tell the Internet."

Soon it becomes apparent that they are either living under an ancient Egyptian curse, or they're making it all up.

It's so common that somebody else has already coined the sarcastic term for it: Munchausen by Internet.

In Real Life it's Called...

Munchausen Syndrome.

The basis of need here is the same as the attention-seekers above, only these people will only settle for the positive and sympathetic attention that comes with being sick or some other kind of distress. You know, without the whole "actually being sick" thing to bog them down.


Yeah, my house is on fire right now, it totally sucks.

In real life they can keep it up for years, because society doesn't make it easy to be skeptical in these situations. If you cast doubt on them and then later discover it was in fact true, suddenly you're the biggest douche on the planet.

So Why Does it Happen on the Internet?

As easy as it is to pull off in real life, it's 10 time easier online where there's no simple way to fact-check the claims. So it doesn't take a balls-out liar or con man to pull it off. Hell, all you need to do is know how to type, and you have access to that same outpouring of sympathy all Munchausen sufferers get addicted to.

A famous case of cyberMuching was that of Kaycee Nicole, a 19-year-old with Leukemia who turned out to have been created by 40-year-old Debbie Swenson. The Kaycee character posted daily for two years in a online journal about her struggle to live with her illness. She then "died" and only when there was no funeral people did people figure out it had all been a hoax.

And even then, Swenson could keep doing it elsewhere if she so pleased. She may be out doing it right now. On the anonymous Internet, you can create a dozen different characters and when one of them starts to get boring the "parent" can just kill them off. This is clinically known as the LOST approach.

KristallNacht wrote:seems relevant to the whole kis thing lol

*article*

Cheese wrote:
You internet asperger's syndrome you.

KristallNacht wrote:

Cheese wrote:
You internet asperger's syndrome you.

when I read that I thought "this is probably what people think of me...oh wait no...i'm amazing"

Lord Pheonix wrote:

KristallNacht wrote:

Cheese wrote:
You internet asperger's syndrome you.

when I read that I thought "this is probably what people think of me...oh wait no...i'm amazing"

Your alone in that thought

JumpingJet wrote:I wont rnkt on about it but and i am not going to say "Told you so" as it just doesnt feel right to say it. But all i am going to say is this.

I guess i just needed the proof.

My idea, which turns out to be others ideas aswell, just needed this evidence.

We can not gain all the "Real" proof as its the internet but this should be enough.
I know some of you like Gauz arnt realy bothered but speaking from my point of view i didnt just want to leave it open as for people to be thinking "Yeh, so what maybe she is or isnt" I wanted for people to realise and fully understand.

Anyway, Thats me and nice going there NT.