From the beginning of humanity humans have been programmed with the essential instinct to protect and nurture their offspring, mothers especially. But what if that very instinct to protect was taken over by an overwhelming emotional need for attention pushing you to inflict pain and illness on to your child causing in some extreme cases death. Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome, or MBPS, is the mental disorder that drives usually a mother or caregiver to injure or kill an innocent child and with around 625 cases in the U.S reported annually it’s caused a need for more swift diagnosis system in place before fatality occurs (Adbulhamid). But is such a disease real and how would someone be able to distinctly identify all the warning signs? How could someone violate the trust and bond a child has with its mother?
According to Dr. Sheslow the name Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome was named after an 18th century general Baron von Munchausen a man well known for the outlandish stories he told. This name definitely holds true to the disease. The rough definition of the disease is a condition in which a caregiver intentionally creates or fabricates an illness or symptoms of an illness for no personal gain except to receive attention from the medial officials involved. It is known as one of the most dangerous forms of child abuse as it is difficult to pin point. In the majority of cases involving MBPS the predator is the mother or primary care giver. Rarely, but in a few instances the father is the offender however it was found that usually he is a stepfather in these cases.
In extreme cases the ending result is the death of the child, which is about 31% of all the cases. The majority of the time the victim is under the age of four (Adbulhamid). Although it has been seen in older children it is rare and usually the child goes along with the mother out of fear and the feeling that they are only loved by their mother when they are sick. The typical complaint made by the parents involves illnesses directly related to the stomach or digestive track such as diarrhea, stomach pain, vomiting and a large array of other symptoms which typically only occur while the mother is present. It was found that suffocation is the cause of death in 10% of all cases involving MBPS that were deemed SIDS (“Munchausen“).
In one reported case the predator used their child’s open wound as their complaint and would continuously infect the wound by rubbing oven cleaner on it burning the open flesh preventing it from healing and producing a bizarre rash (Sheslow). Some mothers have admitted to starving their children or even injecting them with household chemicals and even urine to cause infections so they could see a doctor. One mother admitted to poisoning and killing her infant child with a high dose of salt (Adbulhamid). At one hospital where they recorded several mothers under suspicion of having MBPS, they observed blood being placed in urine samples and medication being thrown out or replaced with another .So what does the typical predator look like or act like and what drives them?
The typical predators in these situations have a generally common background. The offender usually has had past experiences with either sexual abuse or physical abuse and in their youth would be described as being consumed with the desire for attention from others around them. Not only does the disorder directly affect the child but in some cases the parent themselves claim to be sick and will inflict harm on themselves in order to receive attention. In one case a women was intentionally ingesting bleach to gain attention from EMS and medical personnel. All of these past situations can be the perfect formula to produce a women desperate enough to harm her child for her own desire for attention and to feel superior because of their ability to lie so convincingly.
How can someone distinguish a woman with Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome from a protective concerned mother with a genuinely sick child? Some warning signs have been outlined by Dr. Adbulhamid such as the caregiver will be seen by others as immensely attentive and caring people, usually becoming friends with medical staff involved. They are seen as being masters of deception and very typically have extensive experience or have even worked in the medical field leaving them fascinated by it and equipped with a vast knowledge of the subject. He goes on stating that they will be unhappy with whatever the tests show, usually negative or normal, and will demand another strenuous barrage of testing or will even take the child to multiple doctors who are all unknowingly testing the child repeatedly. Some women have even gone to the extent of out of state doctors so as to not leave a trail.
Along with diagnosis, prevention of further abuse of the child is of the utmost importance in these cases. In order to spot this abuse there are many steps to follow such as many hospitals, upon suspicion of MBPS, have rooms equipped with cameras where they will put the suspected in and observe the interactions between mother and child. When they have any substantial evidence they will then contact child protective services and the child will be removed from the parents care. Another way for a doctor to decide effectively is to do an extensive background review of the child’s medical history with the mother, making sure she doesn’t make any mistakes as some of the history may not be true making it hard for her to lie about a situation she is attempting to reiterate.
A huge question on the mind of people is whether the predator has a mental disorder or if they are acting on free will when they kill their children. According to Dr. Adbulhamid it is rare that a person with Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome also has any substantial illness psychologically, however many who have the illness claim to have a multiple personality disorder. As far a diagnosis of the disorder there are a few different sets of guidelines one must follow before accusing anyone of such an unthinkable thing like harming their child. This is in fact why most cases of MBPS go undiagnosed until it’s too late and much of the damage, mentally and physically, has been done to the child, if the child is in fact still alive. Once officially diagnosed which according to Dr. Adbulhamid means they fit all characteristics laid out by the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children also known as (APSAC). These require two things to be present, harm to the child from excessive intervention and a care giver who has fabricated the illness. Once the diagnosis has been established the predator can now begin a large amount of therapy and many different avenues for treatment. However unfortunately according to Dr. Sheslow most of the time the problem is resolved when CPS gets involved, the parent moves on to a younger child or the child dies.
No matter what the outcome the cases of Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome are on the rise annually and the only form of prevention is for the physician to be immensely attentive to the child and mother and even that is risky to prove all on its own. This is a disease that is beyond our emotional comprehension because it is such a violation of our most basic instinct. It’s hard to imagine a mother intentionally harming a small child who has no voice of their own and in many instances in just a baby. Perhaps further psychological evaluation of the predators in these cases can give us a better look into the mind of a mother who does not love her child and is a cold calculated liar.
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