Today I am going to talk about a syndrome where we doubt ourselves,our skills, knowledge, talent and our accomplishments…

This syndrome is also known as Fraud syndrome, imposterism, or imposter phenomenon. There is this continuous fear of being exposed as fraud…This is one of the major self sabotaging psychological pattern…leading to self doubt, anxiety,stress and at times even obsessive compulsive behaviour.

People experiencing this syndrome actually attribute all their achievements to luck or chance and they believe they do not deserve what they have achieved. Along with the thought there is this fear of being exposed as frauds.

This imposterism leads to self sabotaging belif which causes lot of anxiety,fear and uncertainty.

The most common signs and symptoms of imposter syndrome are:

1. Having severe self doubt , low self esteem along with poor sense of self.
2. Overthinking and continuous fear of being exposed
3. Self criticism and undermining hardwork and efforts done by self.
4. Over achiever and being perfectionist to an extend being self judgemental.
5. High level of stress and anxiety.
6. Beleive that what others know what s much more than what they know.
7. Continuous feeling of incompetence and inadequacy.

This is different than self doubt in this syndrome there is this persistent and chronic fear along with anxiety and this effects everyday functioning and social interaction.

The difficult part is it can not be diagnosed as it is often missed bit people experiencing this syndrome also experience or struggle with mental health issues.

Let's understand what are the types of imposterism 

The perfectionist

They believe I need to be perfect.i can't make mistake otherwise I will be exposed. I should be perfect all the time hundred percent.

The Expert

I need to know everything, I am not smart enough. I need certification and I can't be exposed as  unknowledge able.

The Soloist

I must do everything by myself so that no one knows I don't know things. I can't accept help from others.

The Superhuman

I can do all by myself easily and efficiently. If I am competent I will be able to do it all. I need to work harder than others so that I am not exposed.

The Genius

I need to set high goals belif that I need to be able to do things faster and with ease .I am imposter if I am not able to be genius at what I do. I must have ability to master the task 

This continuous fear leads to the defence mechanism which manifest as types of imposterism you associate with.

Problem with this syndrome is that it is like a vicious cycle wher you continuously belittle yourself and have self doubt and the more you accomplish more you feel like an fraud and imposter believing you don't deserve it.

Be aware and next time if you see someone showing this syndrome or you experience it yourself give yourself a break.

The only way to cope through this by shifting your thoughts and perception about self. Take small steps,  be kind to yourself and know you are not alone.

Let go of perfectionism and reachout for support.come out of your comfort zone.

Attribute your success to yourself and do not compare yourself to others.

Take small steps and accept you are work in progress.

Be aware and be realistic.