The article describes Truman syndrome, a rare mental disorder in which a person believes they are the hero of a reality show and sees the world as a set. Scientists link its rise to the internet, technology, and secondary reality, where some lose touch with ordinary life. It gives striking doctor cases showing how dangerous and hard to treat this can be.

The name of this affliction is Truman Syndrome, which got its name thanks to Peter Weir’s film "The Truman Show" starring Jim Carrey. This mental disorder consists in the fact that a person does not perceive himself in real reality; he thinks he is the hero of a reality show, everything around him is scenery, and what is happening is the invention of the directors.
Recently, there have been more and more such people, and doctors are already beginning to sound the alarm.
Many psychiatrists believe that the emergence of this kind of illusion is influenced by the level of culture and technology. The Internet is penetrating our lives more and more. Along with it, communication between people and its perception are changing as well. Of course, some people perceive such changes normally, instantly adapting to the new electronic reality and calmly separating it from real life. Others, however, become so deeply immersed and saturated with “secondary reality” that one fine day they stop identifying themselves with ordinary people. Networks inspire them with incredible fantasies, which are then embodied in the global virtual space. It is precisely such people who are affected by the syndrome, the scientists conclude.
Treating such patients is very difficult, because in their understanding, doctors are also hired actors. Scientists cite the example of how one girl committed suicide, convinced that this was the only way to “get out of the show.”
Dr. Joel Gold, who is writing a book about Truman Syndrome, describes many cases from practice. For example, one patient wanted to see the “twin towers” in person. He did not believe that they had been destroyed by terrorists and was convinced that the drama had been staged before him on television. And Austrian scientists give the example of a woman who claimed that she had turned into a walking webcam.
Researchers say that people with such deviations do not want to become famous; on the contrary, they want to be completely alone.