What Is Capgras Syndrome? The Impacts Of This Type Of Delusion
Media often showcases family members forgetting their loved ones while dealing with dementia through conditions like Alzheimer's Disease. However, there are multiple reasons a person might forget or not recognize someone they love, including Capgras syndrome.
This rare neurological and psychological condition impacts only 0.12% of the general population. Capgras syndrome can cause a person to see their loved ones as imposters. For this reason, it can significantly affect the person living with the condition and those in their life who love them.
What is Capgras syndrome? A delusional misidentification syndrome
Capgras syndrome involves the belief that someone in your life is not who they say they are and has been replaced by an imposter. An individual who experiences this condition may look at their partner and believe that the person in front of them is an imposter rather than the person with whom they may have long been in relationship.
What causes Capgras syndrome?
For many people, Capgras is a side effect of Alzheimer's disease or dementia. These individuals might lose memories with their loved ones, and dementia's impact on their minds can distort their sense of reality. Not everyone with these age-related diseases also experiences Capgras syndrome, but it is a common cause of development.
Schizophrenia may also be related to the development of Capgras syndrome. Schizophrenia is a mental illness that affects the mind and the areas of the brain that consider reality. Schizophrenia often affects a person's ability to engage with reality and might incite delusions and hallucinations, which could be a reason for Capgras syndrome.
The final way that Capgras syndrome may develop is a brain injury or neurological condition like a tumor. This cause may be the rarest and often occurs after an injury or brain disease around the part of the brain impacting facial recognition processing. Damage to this area can make it more difficult for someone to connect a face to a memory of an individual. As a result, the individual may believe that the person in front of them is not who they say they are.
Treatment for Capgras syndrome
There is no cure for Capgras syndrome. However, there are methods used to alleviate symptoms and help individuals work with themselves rather than fighting their reality. Antipsychotic medications may sometimes be used to manage symptoms, and psychodynamic therapy has been used to help clients come to terms with their symptoms. Work with a psychiatrist or medical doctor before starting, stopping, or changing medication or medical treatments for any condition.
One treatment method is to look at the underlying cause of the syndrome itself. If Capgras is due to schizophrenia, it may be treated by treating the symptoms of schizophrenia. For those with Alzheimer's disease or dementia, however, Capgras might not be as treatable, as dementia is a degenerative disease that ends in death. There may be ways to reduce the client's emotional or physical pain and help them live their last moments peacefully in these cases.
Therapy may be another way to work with someone with this disorder. Working with a therapist or psychiatrist may help the person understand what's going on in their mind and try to come to terms with what it means for them. Capgras syndrome often affects the way a person interacts with others. Learning new ways of communicating and interacting with those they don't remember might be beneficial. Even if they can't believe the person in front of them is someone they know, they can learn to respect that individual and "get to know them" again for the "first time."
How to support your parent, child, or another with Capgras syndrome
If you know someone with this syndrome, you might wonder how you can support them without causing them distress. Some people with Capgras might not experience episodes all the time. For these individuals, it may help to keep them as calm as possible during an episode, which could mean removing the person they see as an imposter from the room until the delusion stops. Arguing with them, or trying to correct their perceptions and feelings, during an extreme episode could cause further agitation.
In addition, it may help to work with these individuals to learn new ways of recognizing people other than vision. If they can hear a voice before they see the individual, they may be able to develop pathways to associate the person in their mind with the person in front of them. They may be able to work around the perception that someone is an imposter if they can recognize the person through other methods. However, this method might be best done in the presence of a professional like a doctor or therapist.
It may also help to find a professional who can help them work through the challenges of this syndrome. For someone with this syndrome, the difficulty may not only be about recognizing loved ones. They might experience grief or emotional pain, believing that their loved ones have passed, moved away, or abandoned them. In these cases, any attempt to tell them their loved one is in front of them might cause further grief. For this reason, professional guidance may be most effective.
Counseling and other mental health services for Capgras syndrome
Professional support may guide someone living with Capgras syndrome, or those who love them. With a therapist, this individual may receive an impartial view of the situation and an objective opinion on moving forward. Therapy may help them address thoughts, feelings, and ideas surrounding the person they believe they've lost. Over time, a therapist may help them find ways to "meet" or reconnect with someone they believe is an imposter.
Online therapy for Capgras syndrome for you or another person in your life
If leaving the house is difficult due to Capgras syndrome, online therapy can be convenient. Studies have found that online counseling can be as effective as in-person therapy, which tends to be more affordable than traditional therapy without insurance. With online platforms like BetterHelp, someone with Capgras syndrome can be matched with a therapist experienced with similar symptoms. They can communicate with their therapist via phone, videoconference, and in-app messaging as needed.
If you're a family member or friend of someone with Capgras syndrome, you might also benefit from therapy with an online or in-person therapist. Talking about how it feels to be considered an imposter by someone you love might help you process any emotions that arise. Even if you understand the cause of their condition, you might also perceive that you have lost someone about whom you care deeply. A therapist can help you navigate these feelings.
Takeaway
Can brain damage cause Capgras delusion?
Yes, Capgras delusion can develop following a brain injury. For example, one case report followed a man in his thirties who developed Capgras delusions following a severe motor vehicle accident that left him with a traumatic brain injury. However, more research is needed to fully understand the link between brain injuries and Capgras delusions.
Is Capgras syndrome always a symptom of Lewy body dementia?
Capgras syndrome is a delusional misidentification in which a person’s loved one is replaced by an identical double. It’s widely known in the field of neurological sciences, first identified by French psychiatrist, Joesph Capgras, in 1924.
Lewy body dementia is considered a significant risk factor for Capgras syndrome, but there are other causes. For example, according to one clinical report, Capgras syndrome is common in other neurodegenerative disorders, like Alzheimer’s dementia.
What is Capgras syndrome, aka imposter syndrome, and how is it different from Fregoli syndrome?
According to a biological sciences study published in The Royal Society Publishing, Capgras syndrome is a delusional condition in which a person believes a person close to them, such as a family member, has been replaced by an imposter. These delusions might not go away, despite the assurances of other family members or other trusted sources.
Fregoli syndrome is also a delusional condition. However, it occurs when someone believes that strangers are familiar people who’ve disguised themselves. Another similar type of delusion is a mirror image delusion, in which someone believes their reflection in the mirror is that of another person.
Regardless of the exact cause or type, these delusions can all be frightening and confusing.
Does Capgras delusion ever go away?
Capgras syndrome typically does not go away on its own. However, treatment with medication and/or therapy can often help manage these covert face recognition delusions.
To find the right treatment, doctors may use mental skills tests, physical exams, and imaging to diagnose underlying conditions. They will then recommend appropriate treatments, such as antipsychotic medications, validation therapy, and other forms of interventions.
What part of the brain is affected by Capgras syndrome?
Radiological findings indicate that Capgras syndrome is associated with damage in several brain regions, including the temporal regions and bifrontal cortex. Capgras syndrome and other forms of delusions are relatively common in individuals with schizophrenia, dementia, epilepsy, pituitary tumors, cerebrovascular accidents, and traumatic brain injuries. Capgras syndrome can be a frightening and confusing distortion of reality perception, leading to aggressive behavior in some cases.
What is Lewy body dementia, and can it cause the belief that significant others have been replaced by imposters?
Lewy body dementia (LBD) is a type of progressive brain disorder in which protein deposits build up in regions of the brain, including the temporal cortex, hippocampus, and limbic cortex. Some people with LBD experience Capgras syndrome, in which they recognize faces of familiar people but think they’re not the people they know and trust.
Medications used to manage or treat dementia, like cholinesterase inhibitors and antipsychotic medications, can reduce Capgras syndrome symptoms.
Is Capgras syndrome a mental health disorder or a type of delusion?
Capgras syndrome is not itself a mental disorder included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), however, it is a type of delusion that can be a feature of diagnosable disorders, such as schizophrenia. A person suspected of Capgras syndrome will recognize the face of a familiar person, but the person holds a false belief that they’ve been replaced by an identical double.
How do you talk to someone with Capgras syndrome?
Capgras syndrome is a delusional belief syndrome in which someone has false beliefs that close family members or others have familiar faces but they don’t believe they’re the people they know. An underlying condition, like delusional disorders or dementia, is often responsible for the development of Capgras syndrome. Mental disorders, such as substance-induced psychosis, can also cause the syndrome.
Some tips for talking to someone with Capgras syndrome-related symptoms include:
- Validate their feelings
- Try not to argue or directly contradict them
- Use a calm and soothing tone of voice
- Keep routines consistent
- Seek help from a professional
What causes Capgras syndrome?
Capgras syndrome, sometimes called Capgras phenomenon, is a rare condition in which a person believes that someone they recognize is not the same person they know. According to a non-systematic review, it’s primarily caused by organic brain lesions that impede normal face recognition.
Capgras syndrome is not a diagnosable disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, but it can be a symptom of some mental and physical disorders.
What triggers Capgras syndrome?
Capgras syndrome is a delusional misidentification syndrome characterized by the mistaken belief that someone or something that care for has been replaced by an identical double. The cause of Capgras syndrome is unknown, but it’s thought to be related to psychiatric disorders and lesions. Brain lesions may be caused by traumatic brain injury, neurological disorders (such as schizoaffective disorders), or neurodegenerative diseases.
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