delusional disorder - erotomanic type

im not sure, but i think i might have it. Im obsessed with the band the Jonas Brothers and have traveled from Philadelphia to NYC to see them. A lot of ppl think its weird that im a fan because im 24 years old but what they dont know is that theyre around that same age, theyre 17,20,and 22. Anyway. I went to see them on the TODAY show in NY last summer and camped out overnight with a bunch of friends. We happened to get front row and during soundcheck Joe Jonas looked directly into my eyes and smiled. Him being my "favorite" brother, that made me all giddy,smiley etc. And still to this day I cant figure out what that means. People tell me that he found me attractive which kind of leads me down the road of thinking that he might like me, think about me from time to time, etc. It becomes an obsession for a while,then I think, nah, he cant like me. I met him later on that summer and we kind of made eye contact as I was waiting in line for a picture/autograph and he quickly looked away. I read online articles about what he does when he finds a girl attractive,and smiling is one of them, and he is also very quiet around them, which he was when it was my turn in line. Im a psych major and one of my professors jokingly talked about something called "freshman med student syndrome" where the person thinks they have everything in the book. I have been diagnosed with Body Dysmorphic Disorder and I read somewhere that there can be a comorbidity with Delusional Disorder, which scares me. None of the schizophrenias run in my family which kind of gives me a sigh of relief. So my conclusion is its either me not getting a grip that my celebrity crush might possibly find me attractive, me being delusional as to even think of the possibility, or I have freshman med student syndrome.... is there anyone out there with more experience than I in the psych field that could hypothesize?

Hey,

There are no professionals here, unfortunately, but dfferent diagnoses can always occur alongside each other (comorbidly). I dont see why exploring this partcular crush further would be problematic. You could send this guy a letter and see if he replies. What harm is an innocent crush? I used to believe that Avril Lavigne liked me (despite never actually meeting her).

I'm not a psych major (though I should be). However, it doesn't really sound like you have an obsession to me. It sounds to me like you are just like any other girl with a self-esteem issue who wants to believe that someone will like her. Of course, he's a celebrity and it would be pretty awesome if he actually did like you. However, all psychology aside, there is one thing about men that is 100% fact. If they want a woman, especially if they are concerned that they may never see her again, they are going to do something about it. They are going to let you know without a doubt that they are interested. Seeing as how this Jonas brother didn't bother to collect your email address or phone number or exchange information otherwise, I'd think it safe to assume that you are just another fan to him.

No offense, of course. I'm just attempting to be realistic for your sake. Also, if you really had erotomanic disorder - this would be a more likely scenario:

Although in some cases the delusion is kept secret, in most cases the patient attempts to contact the object of their delusion either through telephone calls, letters, gifts, visits, even stalking them. In some cases, individuals affected by this form of delusional disorder (especially males) have problems with the law because they abusively attempt to pursue the object of their delusion in a "misguided" effort to "rescue" that person from an imaginary danger. "Signs of denial of love are falsely interpreted as affirmation of love."(2)

And since...it doesn't sound like you really think he is in love with you (more like interested) and you haven't tried to initiate contact with him (which I personally think is a VERY bad idea) nor stalked him (thankfully), I'm pretty sure you're ok. However, please do come back if your symptoms get worse and you feel like you need to talk about it. Or better yet, seek counseling in that case. Then come back here for support.

I'm not a psych major either but I've lived with this disorder for over twelve years (not that I was aware I had it initially). You don't have to fit the classic definition to have this disorder. I experienced a similar scenario as you, lisaxo. I had been crushing on a celebrity for years, then had the opportunity to see him perform. Since I was sitting up front, we made eye contact several times. I thought about him contanstly after that. When I listened to his new album months later, I became completely delusional, thinking he was singing with me in mind. I had actually had an erotomanic episode prior to this, but when this one hit me, my symptoms became very apparent. I sent my celebrity crush several emails, two of which were bizarre. Though not threatening or aggressive in nature, they were clearly delusional. It could have been much worse. Other than the emails, I've never acted on the delusions. I'm glad I made a fool of myself with this celebrity (if he even read the emails) as opposed to someone I know personally. The celebrity appears to be a sympathetic sort, and believe me, he's used to being pursued by women.Thank God my husband urged me to get help. Once I received help, I realized I was ill and learned there was an actual name for my condition. Though my father had been ill, he never had this type of delusion. I, like most, had never heard of delusions like this. I still struggle with this illness. I'm not a big proponent of medication. I have made a conscious effort to avoid my current crush (as much as possible), though I still think about him frequently. I have gone for stretches of time, such as several months, without thinking much about him. But then the thoughts return. It can be cyclical, depending on the season and what's going on in my life. Fall and winter seem to be more difficult for many folks. There's less sunlight, people don't get out as much, the holidays are busy and stressful, etc. It's not so much the content of my thoughts that's strange, but the persistence of them. When you're attracted to someone, I think it's only natural to hope he/she fancies you as well. But sometimes people delude themselves too much.
Lisaxo, I would avoid doing anything that might lead you to obsess (I believe you used that word) about him more, and I wouldn't try to contact him. This could feed into the problem more and might lead you to analyze his behavior more, and attribute his actions to you. He may indeed have found you attractive, but to hope he's still thinking about you is unrealistic. Remember, while you may know a lot about him, he knows nothing about you. I hope for your case this is an isolated incident, but please write again if it continues to bother you. I thought a celebrity crush could be harmless, but boy was I wrong!

Hello. Lisaxo, I understand exactly what you mean. I was never diagnosed with a specific delusional disorder, but I do have generalized anxiety, some OCD, and autistic tendencies. I have struggled with severe celeb crushes for the past 8 years, and I'm 29 years old! I hardly ever had celeb crushes in my teens...odd. Met a favorite musician last year in a foreign country at a show. After the show, we had a small chat. He gave me one of his CDs, and at one point, asked my age. After I told him my age, I asked him his age, and he just said he was alot older than me. (I found out later that he's only 8 years older than me). This is basically all that happened that evening, but I am still obsessing about the experience to this day! I analyze the age question on a daily basis, probably to the point of annoyance to my friends and family. I have read almost every interview he has ever done, and I am convinced that we are so much alike that we might be soulmates LOL. Logically, I understand this is an absurd waste of time. I keep telling myself he has probably met over 2000 female fans in the last 15-20 years, and mmmmaybe a rare 2 or 3 of those fans got "lucky" so to speak. My plan of action is to try getting involved in more "real-life" activities (i.e. joining a community, networking with more friends so I can meet other people, etc). I realize this crush won't disappear over night by doing this, but hopefully in time, the chemical imbalance will quit over-exaggerating my odds...
Any other suggestions? Thanks!