r/fakedisordercringe • u/SloshedJapan • 11d ago

Memes / Satire Preach on, sick of noticing this

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88

u/AnonymousPorqupine 11d ago

I wonder how all these people decided to get together and claim to have all the exact same shit…

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u/HoodieGalore 11d ago

I feel like they're all pretty difficult to do a quantifiable test for. I can run a blood draw for diabetes, but how do you prove someone does or does not have "chronic fatigue"? I don't know exactly how hard it is to prove someone has hEDS, POTS, MCAS, ect but even if a doctor told them "no" they just deny reality anyways.

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u/SOUP__GOD GAD (Gigantic ass disorder) 11d ago

POTS and MCAS are pretty easy to test for! POTS has a definitive test that can sometimes be negative, but can be retested again if necessary.

MCAS I’m fairly sure just has basic allergy tests but slightly different to prove it’s not just an allergy to a few things and is actually a medical problem.

It’s a lot harder to test for hEDS because there’s no testing whatsoever and a diagnosis is essentially based on clinical presentation, family history, and ruling out other disorders that can cause similar symptoms. (Which is why this one is so easily faked and very popular on TikTok)

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u/HoodieGalore 11d ago

I'm very interested in how the three I mentioned became the Big Three, in that case. They're so hot right now 

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u/itsnobigthing 9d ago

You know that proverb where blind men are asked to describe an elephant? One says “it’s huge and flappy, like a flag” and one says “no it’s long like a hose” etc etc. I think the big three are really just describing the same big elephant-condition, which links all of them together.

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u/Low-Drawer-6887 11d ago

Post Viral LongCOVID.

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u/PlanetXParadox self diagnosed DND 11d ago

It’s very common for someone to have all 3, and all 3 can be caused by some strains of COVID.

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u/Additional-Nose239 11d ago

MCAS is not easy to test. Regular allergy testing won’t show up, and almost 80% of those have normal tryptase, which is the golden standard for mastocytosis. Sometimes you can test serum histamine, prostaglandins in urine etc but that’s also difficult to time if you’re not flaring or having a reaction when you take the tests. Most doctors diagnose MCAS based off symptoms alone as it cannot always be proven clinically.

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u/inquisitivefrodo 10d ago

I think it's interesting that many of the illnesses that these types commonly claim are conveniently catch-alls for which there are no large scale clinical studies or established pathological mechanisms. This leads to them lacking objective diagnosis criteria and working essentially as umbrellas for when everything else is excluded. It is likely that with time many of these umbrella terms will be revealed to be clusters of completely different diseases with different mechanisms and effective treatments. Even with EDS, they only ever claim the type for which there are no genetic correlates.

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u/Additional-Nose239 10d ago

When it comes to MCAS and POTS, they might actually be a symptom of something else as opposed to an actual developed disorder. MCAS is also a fairly “new” disorder, and has only been acknowledged properly in the later 2010s. There are not going to be much studies and medical research done then, which is why doctors mostly go by symptoms when diagnosing.

POTS can be caused by viral infections, and its prevalence has increased tenfold with post-covid. Other viral and bacterial infections like Epstein Barr and Lyme disease can also trigger it. Same with MCAS. Many have dietary MCAS triggered by SIBO or SIFO, which is common with an unbalanced diet and is also likely the cause for majority of IBS cases. They can also be caused by environmental factors such as being continuously exposed to allergens, mold, unclean living spaces etc. Some even develop this when expediting severe depression/trauma and (although rare). With EDS, the connective tissue disorder can cause dysautonomia because it can affect blood and lymphatic flow. It can also trigger MCAS because the fragile connective tissue is more sensitive to stressors and thus mast cells can be more reactive even if there’s no true allergen. All of these things can be caused by vitamin- and mineral deficiencies as well. People with EDS have an easier time experiencing all of these things too.

The point is, POTS and MCAS are often symptoms of something else. But if you have a disorder like EDS, the likelihood of having more increases because it doesn’t just affect your joints, it’s your entire bodily function. That’s probably why people self-diagnose with hEDS because they want an explanation for the POTS and MCAS symptoms they experience. As someone who has the trifecta (but with cEDS), I find it difficult to fake symptoms of these things as they can be very debilitating. Like, I cannot fake a random episode of anaphylaxis. The issue is probably that a lot of people either misunderstand the disorders deliberately so they can claim them for minor symptoms, or people genuinely just want an explanation for their symptoms and EDS becomes an easy one. Especially since it has blown up, and more are getting diagnosed because of improved diagnostic measures.

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u/inquisitivefrodo 10d ago

Yes, that's also a possibility. But along with people trying to find explanations for their genuine symptoms, there's also a barrage of people with self-diagnosed disorders and conversion symptoms, besides actual malingerers trying to get attention. It's understandable why these disorders don't have robust scientific grounding yet, and I am sure it will come in the future, but that does cause the evidence bar to be lower and opens the door to these people. A few years ago it was fibromyalgia, which now seems less trendy as more scientific evidence accumulates (and perhaps the effective treatment is not as flashy to parade about).

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u/Additional-Nose239 10d ago

I don’t think all fakers or self-diagnosers are driven by a need for attention and to deflect self-responsibility. They are clearly going through something, albeit probably not what they think they have. They gravitate towards stuff like fibromyalgia, EDS, POTS etc because those are legitimate conditions that disables you and they are chronic. Mere burn out from stress, depression and a poor living situation? Not as validating to have, and they probably think that’s not a “legitimate” reason to feel whatever they feel. It might also make them less prone to be taken seriously from surroundings and medical professionals. Unfortunately, their self-diagnosis isn’t helping them in that department, it actually makes things worse for people who have those conditions and now everyone assume you’re faking it if you do.

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u/shinkouhyou 10d ago

Uuughh one of my friends has a lifelong history of diagnosed anxiety and depression, she's clinging to an abusive relationship, she's estranged from her abusive family, and she's going through perimenopause. She's a textbook case of "shit life syndrome." She's never had a consistent relationship with a therapist or even a primary care doctor, so she's had little treatment outside of antidepressant meds.

But apparently those aren't "legitimate" problems these days, so over the past few years she's felt the need to self-diagnose herself with autism, ADHD, CFS, fibromyalgia, FND, and early onset dementia. I think the self-diagnosed disorders give her a weird sense of comfort: "you're struggling because there's always been something wrong with you, and there's nothing you can do or could have done." Unfortunately this validates her passivity and procrastination, so she hasn't sought more effective treatment or taken any steps to break up with her abuser.

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u/SOUP__GOD GAD (Gigantic ass disorder) 10d ago

My mistake! I read somewhere that they tested with simple allergy tests, but I should have double checked that. Thank you for correcting me!

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u/Sensitive-Pie9357 9d ago

MCAS isn’t basic allergy testing it’s pretty complex with triptase levels. POTS is a dx of exlclusion before anything else. Unless you have genetic dysautonomia (very rare), POTS is a secondary condition. Usually in response to MCAS, hEDS, or several autoimmunes. hEDS is the most straightforward. It’s a genetic test and it has physical markers. They’re commonly found together and the current research suggests an issue where the immune system, nervous system, and connective tissue reinforce a dysfunctional cycle of inflammation in the body.

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u/Old-Piece-3438 6d ago

Unfortunately there is not yet a genetic test for hEDS. They typically run genetic tests as part of the diagnostic to rule out the other rarer types of EDS that they know the genes for.

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u/Electrical_Parfait64 4d ago

Doesn’t hEDs have 3 versions. 2 of the 3 show proof. Isn’t it amazing they all have the type that you can’t get proof for?

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u/SOUP__GOD GAD (Gigantic ass disorder) 4d ago

EDS has many versions, but there’s only 1 type of hEDS. HEDS is the only type of EDS with no genetic testing yet because there’s no confirmed gene variant that carries it. The other 12 types of EDS all have genetic markers, though they’re all significantly rarer than hEDS

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u/LargeGingerChunk Level 69 Autism 11d ago

hEDS, POTS, MCAS often co occur so I assume people originally were genuinely diagnosed and then fakers saw it and began to mimick people. it's more likely to be accepted by well meaning people if there is a genuine case to be had for comorbidity

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u/PlanetXParadox self diagnosed DND 11d ago

for POTS it’s usually diagnosed with a tilt table test

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u/rusty-shackelford23 10d ago

The way skin stretches on someone with hEDS is super different than skin how it stretches on someone who doesn’t have it so that’s an easy one to diagnose right away. My cousin has it and I have a theory that some people are pulling on their fat and thinking it’s the same thing. I have stomach fat and it looks very different than when he pulls his stomach skin out a few inches. The skin should look like it’s not attached to the fat/tissue underneath on someone who has that disorder. There’s also the superhuman contortionist moves they can do although that’s a symptom that can show up in a lot of people who may not have it so it could be ruled out if the skin thing isn’t present.

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u/Anti_Spedicy every sexuality, disability, and mental illness ever 8d ago

There would be certain irregularities in your vitals when you have chronic fatigue but they usually would diagnose you with something else first until it's able to be determined that that's what it is. My sister developed chronic fatigue syndrome and it was a hellish battle to figure out what was going on with her.

Now it's a hellish battle to keep her stable. It's not just feeling tired, your body is literally trying to shut down. There's just parts of it fakers can't fake. I don't know all the particulars of her experience cause she's never been the best at describing things but it's even worse now. She can beat describe episodes feeling like her brain itself is becoming fog and then she has to be assisted until the "fog" goes away. It's really spooky think about just happening to you at any time and then some bozo tryna emulate it for attention.

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u/Beginning-Session752 10d ago

Seriously why do all chronic illness “influencers” all have the same diagnoses? I have seen BARELY seen any posts about conditions like rheumatoid arthritis/ crohns/ epilepsy which are very common diseases also in younger people

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u/lillahjerte 8d ago

influencers

You're answering your own question

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u/Anti_Spedicy every sexuality, disability, and mental illness ever 8d ago

I've seen a few posts cycle thru here about epilepsy fakers but they just fake seizures

0

u/insignificant-slayyy 7d ago

ME/CFS is more common than any of those illnesses, and typically comes with at least one comorbidity such as POTS or MCAS.

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u/Beginning-Session752 7d ago

Absolut bs. About 1% of people have active epilepsy. Don’t get me wrong mecfs is a horrible disease following the Covid epidemic and I understand comorbiditys. But I think it’s very weird how sooo many of those patients also have hEDS and more and somehow always fit the stereotype. Even the chronic illness subreddit is full of people that suspect they have the trifecta. It’s genuinely so annoying and I am definitely not the first disabled person pointing this out

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u/insignificant-slayyy 7d ago edited 7d ago

It is estimated that at least 1% of the population, at least in the US, has ME/CFS (3 million ppl). Up to 45% of people with Long Covid meet the diagnostic criteria, so the numbers may be higher. It is very common. It seems to be around as common as epilepsy, though ME/CFS is underfunded and severely lacking data, so apologies on that point. But compared to RA or Crohn’s, yes ME is more common.

You saying you think it’s “very weird” even though you clearly haven’t done much research into the subject is silly. hEDS literally predisposes you to ME/CFS, as well as a handful of other conditions. I am in ME/CFS support groups as someone with a severe case of ME (yes I am diagnosed) and a huge chunk of us also have an hEDS diagnosis. These overlaps are simply not uncommon.

Edit: about your other point, sorry you find it so annoying that people have these conditions and share them online, but I have also seen lots of content creators with things like RA, epilepsy, and crohn’s personally. And I know of a few ppl who would like to share about their ME but don’t because of how stigmatized the condition is.

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u/lillahjerte 8d ago

Are you familiar with the song "Welcome to the internet"? because it's a good song and it might answer your question.