Kleptomaniac is the individual who suffers from kleptomania, a psychological disorder that makes the person feel the uncontrollable need to steal various things, including worthless objects.
According to psychiatry, kleptomania is formed by a disorder of the person's impulsive control, causing them not to recognize the limits on the acts they commit. But, for a person to be actually diagnosed as kleptomaniac, it is necessary to observe some basic symptoms of the disorder:
- Theft disassociated from any expression of feeling (anger, revenge, etc.);
- Excessive anxiety before theft;
- Relief or satisfaction upon completion of the act;
- Total failure to resist the desire to steal.
As stated, kleptomaniacs usually feel a lot of anxiety when observing an object they want to steal, and this urge is uncontrollable. In some cases, after stealing, the kleptomaniac may feel very sorry and return the object. But, the need to go back to stealing becomes imminent for the kleptomaniac.
For psychiatry, kleptomania is a psychiatric disorder that belongs to the group of
manias, which are mental disorders that are characterized mainly by the presence of an expansive, abnormal and unexpected mood and behavior.Learn more about the meaning of Mania.
Several factors can influence the emergence of kleptomaniac behaviors, from biological, social, cultural, among others. Kleptomania is more identified, according to psychiatric research, in women and from the second half of adolescence and early adulthood.
Remember that kleptomania is not a conduct disorder, a personality disorder or a consequence of any other mental pathology
Kleptomania Treatment
The kleptomaniac has no specific motivation to steal something, so people who suffer from this disorder need to be supported in seeking professional psychiatric treatment.
in addition to the accompaniment by a qualified psychologist, in some cases, the patient can also take some medications, such as antidepressants and anxiolytics, but only with medical indication.
Usually, psychologists use techniques of desensitization or that seek the meaning of the theft and the pleasure resulting from it in the kleptomaniac.