In the famous Shakespeare’s Othello the Moor of Venice ends strangling Desdemona, his wife unfairly. The culprit is not the scheming Iago, but the protagonist himself is unable to control his jealousy despite Emilia effort to convince him that his wife is completely faithful. Othello syndrome is a psychiatric disorder that can lead to dramatic consequences. The sufferer has delusions of uncontrollable jealousy without reason. It is convinced that your partner cheats constantly causing insane behavior that varies in severity. Unfortunately, we are all aware of the victims of gender violence. But you do not go to such drastic cases. Othello syndrome is a reality whose origin has deep roots in neurophysiology of our brains. Despite the studies, we still know very little about the syndrome that makes life quite impossible for some couples.

How is living with the syndrome of Otelo

Steve Wood is a rather ordinary man, recently married and has already walked the thirties. Every time he comes home, sits quietly on the couch while his wife, Debbie, on the living room with a suspicious look and dragging a small device. Without blinking, he undergoes the same ritual, afternoon and evening, upon entering the door: his wife makes him go through a session polygraph lie detector, every time he returns home. We speak of “more jealous woman in the world,” Debbie Wood, who was married to Steve last 2014. This is just one manifestation of Othello syndrome, and delusivo delusional disorder. Like other types of delusional disorders, Othello syndrome is characterized by a Change clothes drawer, buy a product from another brand or arrive a few minutes late can trigger the syndrome irrational behavior. What does this mean? Jealousy that go beyond the actual reason or explanation. Never mind the evidence or logic.

The affected by Othello syndrome see what you want (or do not want, rather) see. Normally the illusion causes you to detect patterns in the behavior of their partner that leads him to think about a change of habits on your part. Completely unrealistic patterns obviously indicating infidelity. Something very strange, when we talk about Othello syndrome is that patients usually speak of “the other”, without this having a defined face or clear features. it is a “ghost”, an indefinite shadow with which the illusion is recreated again and again without there being any real evidence or a clear source of information. The onset of symptoms can be triggered to small variations in daily life: change clothes from a drawer to another, buy a different brand of food or delayed for a few minutes at the usual time of arrival. Unfortunately, Othello syndrome repeatedly ends in violence or even murder. So at the slightest indicated is appropriate to deal with a professional.

Why does this happen?

Any field related to what happens in the brain is almost unknown territory. Othello Syndrome is no exception. We really know little about the physiological reasons behind this syndrome. For it is not just a matter of behavior, at least according to some evidence. Jealousy has an emotional component associated with self-esteem, according to modern psychology. They do not only in humans but are a component known in the behavior of different mammals, where the word “self” becomes meaningless. If we were to give a biological sense of jealousy, probably be the conservation powered by fear of loss, especially in matters of partner and offspring. However, Othello syndrome is a disease. That is, an attitude that prevents the proper development, Othello syndrome seems to have a “physical” originates in the brain happiness and a normal life. It is not comparable to normal jealousy and that leads to the end harmful to health.

Some studies associate Othello syndrome Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, neurodegenerative diseases. In fact, an interesting study shows that treated Othello syndrome associated with treatment with amantadine href=”https://jgp.sagepub.com/content/4/3/157.short”> Parkinson patient. Other works explain the relationship between other brain injuries and the manifestation of this syndrome. What does this mean? That there is probably a physiological reason in the brain to the development or worsening of Othello syndrome. It is not far-fetched I think. It also serves to indicate that it is a physical problem, not just a point of insanity. However, it is important to understand that we are still talking to a lot of ground to discover ahead. We know very little about the syndrome, its causes and consequences, so that what was said before are just guesses. There will be further research to better understand this problem and thus avoid more tragedies such as the Moor of Venice

Hipertextual