Psychologists say there are numerous reasons that people lie, and that the liar most likely enjoys the attention she receives.

"In most cases, people are very often rewarded for the lies they tell," said Robert Feldman, a psychology professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and an expert in the motivations for lying.

"This woman got a lot of attention and a lot of sympathy. Very often when people lie they embellish more and more and can't walk away from it… They back themselves into a corner and become increasingly trapped by the lie," he said.

"You have to look at the rewards people get. People are incredibly sympathetic to rape victims or those in tragic circumstances. There is a status you otherwise wouldn't have, so by lying you make others treat you better and probably feel better about yourself."

According to Paul Ekman, a psychologist at the University of San Francisco, she probably got away with lying for so long because people are generally trustworthy.

"Why don't we catch liars? Because we don't want to know the truth. ... Most liars underestimate how difficult it is maintain a lie. Do all liars get caught? There is no way to know, but I've always been impressed how often liars do get caught. You need a good memory in order to be successful. You need to control your own emotions. You need to be able to take on the perspective of another person, and plan a number of steps ahead."

"'Pathological lying' is an oxymoron. Lying is not a disease; all lying is a choice," Ekman said. "Some people lie with greater frequency than others, but there is no treatment for chronic liars."