There Is No Ethan: How Three Women Caught America's Biggest Catfish

by Anna Akbari

Changing how and what we present can alter the reality of our lives and our connections. So when Ethan mentioned wrestling with and changing up which version of himself he would present to a woman to impress her, it didn’t strike me as odd, but rather as accurate. It’s something we all do, to varying extents.

“The true identity is constantly unveiling itself, but it’s also constantly creating itself.”

Ethan’s ability to pivot from hot to cold in an instant was chipping away at my sanity and my ability to emotionally self-regulate.

“I was in a horrible place years ago and got involved in this charade, with the sole motive of finding an outlet through which to vent my frustrations,” he explained, as if tricking women online is a normal therapeutic outlet.