Definition:
Kleptomania is an inability or great difficulty in resisting impulses of stealing. Kleptomania is recognized from shoplifting or
ordinary theft, as shoplifters and thieves generally steal for monetary value, or associated gains and usually display intent or
premeditation, while people with kleptomania are not necessarily contemplating the value of the items they steal or even the
theft until they are compelled.
Diagnosis:
Recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal objects that are not needed for personal use or for their monetary value,
Increasing sense of tension immediately before committing the theft, Pleasure, gratification, or relief at the time of committing
the theft. The stealing is not committed to express anger or revenge and is not in response to a delusion or as hallucination
Treatment:
Kleptomania has several different treatments: Cognitive-behavioral therapy is adviced as an adjuvant to medication.
There are some medications that are used for people diagnosed with kleptomania are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, mood
stabilizers and opioid antagonists. The only open-trial of medication for kleptomania showed naltrexone significantly reduced the
intensity of urges to steal, stealing thoughts and stealing behavior
Symptoms and Signs:
Symptoms of kleptomania may include: Powerful urges to steal items that you don't need. Feeling increase of tension leading up
to the theft. Feeling of pleasure or gratification while stealing. Feeling terrible guilt or shame after the theft
Causes:
The cause of kleptomania is unknown, although it may have a genetic component and may be transmitted among first-degree relatives.
There seems to be a strong propensity for kleptomania to coexist with obsessive-compulsive disorder, bulimia nervosa, and clinical
depression.
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