Cyberchondria and similar “illnesses”

Came across this new word today and realised immediately what it means.

Cyberchondria

What I need now is a word for a troll who makes claims to all sorts of personal illnesses and symptoms (not professionally diagnosed of course) which are highly exaggerated or invented.

6 responses to “Cyberchondria and similar “illnesses”

  1. The internet is a vehicle for marketers to play on people’s fears, but it is not the first.

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  2. I guess that was the bible, Brian. 🙂

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  3. Ken your article might look to a suspicious person as testing the waters for some sort of gagging. Though you wouldn’t want that in every field, I know.

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  4. From personal experience, when such a person does seek professional assistance, they often go on to reject the diagnosis, the assistance and then the professional.

    Sorry, Ken, I can’t help you with a single word. I’ve several collections of words that contain epithets, though. ☺

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  5. When the troll claims illnesses and symptoms in their children, all derived from the ‘net, is this “by proxy”, or do we need another word?

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  6. Brian – a person would have to be deluded, not
    just suspicious, to draw then inferences you do from my brief article. -)

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