From a reader:
Hi. A friend of mine recently told me she did some research on sociopaths and she's very worried that I share a lot of the same traits. I agreed I would go and see a therapist, and a sociopath wouldn't willing go to therapy, correct?
I've always known I was different from other people, but I watched and I learned and I acted. When I was younger I always assumed everyone else did the same. That society was formed by everyone watching and mirroring each other. When I became a teenager I realized my friends were truly genuine, and I was different. This didn't bother me however, I just knew I was different.
When I was 14, I became "depressed." My parents were extremely worried because I was no longer focusing on school, my friendships were failing, I stayed home sick many days each month. I became very frustrated with myself and I didn't understand why going to school and putting on a happy face and pretending to be interested in everyone else was so easy for my friends. It seemed exhausting to me. Soon I became bored of feeling tired and empty all the time, so I started to self harm. I cut my arms a few times. I didn't hate myself or feel miserable or anything like that, I just wanted some excitement. I wanted to see how my parents would react. The doctors continued to prescribe medicine and treat me for depression until I convinced them I was doing fine. It was like I knew it was wrong to make my parents believe I was seriously depressed and/or suicidal, but I just wanted to try it anyway. It was like it hurt them more than it hurt me to harm myself, but I didn't care.
I also have a tendency to lie, but only if it will help me to get something I need or want. I don't go out of my way to tell lies, just for fun. I just know that I'm very convincing and I recognize that it's not right of me to lie, but it works so I don't stop.
The last thing I've noticed about myself is that I've always been able to get obsessed with people easily. Not people I know personally, but celebrities or even fictional characters. Certain celebrities or characters I just like right off the bat. There's something that draws my attention to them. This liking quickly turns into a full blown obsession.
When I become obsessed with someone, say a character in a movie; I constantly watch only their scenes in the movie. I'll watch them over and over and start to mimic their behavior. I study how they act and start to try to think like them. I sometimes change my voice to talk like them. I begin dressing like them. I never bring them up to family/ friends but the obsession is always in the back of my mind. I find people I like and I try to mirror them exactly. The strange part is I'm usually very good at it.
Now that I've told you everything I believe is relevant to the situation, I'm wondering if you can offer some insight.