Compulsive Lying Treatment (Online Therapy Anywhere)
You know the truth. And you know that deep intimacy and self-esteem are impossible without it. So how did the occasional little white lie become a habit, a strategy?
More importantly, how do you turn it around? How do you stop lying habitually, regain your sense of self-worth, and return to a life of trusting, secure relationships?
The first step in recovery is to understand it. To get to the bottom of why you do it.
Why do people become addicted to lying?
Compulsive lying usually starts during childhood. Often as a way of coping with difficult feelings of shame or anxiety, and in response to growing up in an emotionally unsafe environment (where certain thoughts and feelings are considered ‘wrong’), one can become a habitual liar. Other reasons exist as well. Many times the cause is opaque, at first.
Eventually the lying becomes an attempt to avoid difficulties, even though new difficulties result from habitual lying. In some cases, individuals believe deep down, that their true self is flawed and not good enough. They feel they need to lie to win the acceptance and approval of people they value. On the other hand, some individuals lie in order to carve out a certain kind of perceived psychological space between themselves and the other. This is especially clinically apparent with individuals who consistently felt smothered or otherwise controlled.
Over time, lying can become addictive. A habit. It feels more comfortable and more normal than telling the truth, to the point where many compulsive liars end up lying to themselves too.
Unfortunately, without compulsive liar treatment, it can last a lifetime.
Why is it a problem?
While lying may have seemed to make life easier in the past, you’ve probably already realised it can have a significant negative impact on your work, on loved ones, friends and colleagues. Even on strangers! It can ruin your career and destroy relationships.
Deep intimacy requires trust. Friendships require trust. Fruitful working relationships require trust. Without trust, everything you say is called into question and every important person in your life feels constantly betrayed and unclear about your intentions and real thoughts and feelings.
Just as importantly, your lying habit may also be preventing you from getting what you need from your relationships. Instead of expressing what you want, and addressing issues, many individual who lie frequently are chronic people-pleasers who bury resentment. Their partners, friends and colleagues don’t even know they’re unhappy, so there’s virtually no chance of improvement.
Additionally, some evidence indicates lying creates personal distress even when you ‘get away with it’. One effect noted involves difficulties with empathy and connecting with other people.
Plus there’s the constant anxiety a compulsive liar wrestles with about getting caught in a lie. The pressure to remember your lies and to manage the snowball effect of covering up lies with lies, leads you to feel guilty, fake, worthless and powerless to change.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Pathological liar treatment is available. You can stop being a compulsive liar. Of course, the aim is not simply to stop a habit like a bandage on a sore. You can book online to take the next step.
How can you stop?
Admitting that you have a problem with is the first, courageous step in overcoming your lying problem. Pathological liar treatment is the second.
Our psychotherapy, counselling or hypnotherapy online services will help you identify and address the underlying causes of your lying addiction, and, before too long, stop lying altogether.
As you begin to overcome the causes and resultant habits of compulsive or pathological lying, you may notice an improvement in your relationships and a significant increase in your self-confidence. Not the fake kind of confidence that lying temporarily provides, but an authentic feeling of self-worth.
Psychotherapy involves deep, honest self enquiry leading to transformation of the inner conflicts that give rise to excessive lying in the first place.
What can you expect from your confidential ‘treatment for lying sessions’?
We offer online counselling, psychotherapy or virtual hypnotherapy depending on the therapist via Doxy, Skype or Zoom. Our methods are completely non-judgmental. It’s a safe, supportive, accepting environment, and we don’t force you to endure excess guilt or embarrassment. Its not something you should feel ashamed of, or try to hide. It’s merely something that needs treatment ideally from someone who can provide a completely objective and informed perspective while being empathic to the legitimate difficulties a lying addiction involves.
Just as importantly, we don’t just treat your symptoms; we help you discover the causes of your compulsive lying, so you can live a more satisfying, fulfilling and authentic life.
During your first visit, you’ll be able to discuss your problem in confidence, ask any questions, and decide if your psychotherapist is the right fit for you. This initial session will give us an initial insight into the issues involved in your pathological lying, and help us understand what you want to achieve.
After the first session, well begin tailoring a treatment plan to your individual needs. Its possible we may be able to manage your patterns by changing your habitual thoughts and responses, through hypnotherapy, but usually longer term treatment involving psychoanalytic psychotherapy is required. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy is an insight-oriented, intensive treatment that requires an honest commitment from you to address issues, but it is very effective for resolving the underlying causes of compulsive or pathological lying.
That’s not to say that psychoanalytic psychotherapy, alone, is always the answer to chronic lying. Every case is different. Yours may require a combination of psychoanalytic psychotherapy and proven natural treatments like Buddhist psychotherapy, Mindfulness Therapy and Attachment Therapy. Our counsellors are qualified in a range of counselling approaches and treatment techniques, so they’re able to tailor a plan to your specific needs and preferences, rather than trying to force an approach that doesn’t quite work for you.
How long will treatment take?
For some people, treatment starts working within the first few sessions. However almost every compulsive liar requires longer term psychotherapy for meaningful results. Although you may begin to experience change quite quickly, our treatment is not a quick-fix or band-aid solution.
We’re committed to helping you but you need to be committed too. Your progress relies, fundamentally, on your willingness to participate in therapy.
Have questions about treatment?
Call Bayside Psychotherapy on (03) 9557 9113, or use our contact form to find out if we can help you let go of habitual lying. Your call is completely confidential, and there’s absolutely no obligation.
Make an appointment today for secure online therapy anywhere
As long as you have a private space, you can benefit from sessions anywhere without having to travel or worry about parking. If you are ready to participate in treatment for lying, an initial session can be made by calling 03 9557 9113 or booking online.
Note: Whilst we will do our best to assist you, we will rely upon your commitment and collaboration to the treatment process in an endeavour to optimise results. Although some of our therapists work with people presenting with this condition, no guarantees of any outcomes can be made.
