He performed a variety of experiments on the women there, most specifically hypnosis, and concluded that hysteria stemmed from the central nervous system, and had nothing to do with the uterus. There is much history to the definition and diagnosis of hysteria.Explore the beginnings of hysteria in Greece through animal magnetism, vibrators, and, finally, shell shock in World War I. . [4], In ancient Greece, wandering womb was described in the gynecological treatise of the Hippocratic Corpus, "Diseases of Women",[5] which dates back to the 5th and 4th centuries BC. When a patient could not be diagnosed or cured of a disease, it was thought that the symptoms of what would now be diagnosed as mental illness, were actually those of someone possessed by the devil. There were various forms of “genital massage,” ranging from the manual massage, where doctors apply pressure on the woman’s clitoris with their fingers, to hydrotherapy, where the doctors apply pressure using water (Starr and Aron, 373-374). Electronic. April 4th 2016. Female Hysteria was once considered a medical diagnosis for a long time and patients were treated actively with proper medication and other management techniques. Giovanni Matteo Ferrari da Gradi cited marriage and childbearing as a cure for the disease. Since the causes of hysteria are both physical and. ( Log Out /  Although this treatment is now recognized as mere suggestion, it did help in the development of hypnosis (Tasca et al., 114). Other than participating in sexual intercourse, it was thought that fumigating the body with special fragrances would supposedly draw the uterus back to its natural spot in the female body. Hysteria was a term was used to characterize a number of psychological symptoms such as blindness, loss of sensation, hallucinations, suggestibility, and highly emotional behavior. [20][21][22] In 2018, Hallie Lieberman and Eric Schatzberg of Georgia Institute of Technology challenged Maines's claims for the use of electromechanical vibrators to treat hysteria in the 19th century. [6] Aretaeus of Cappadocia described the uterus as "an animal within an animal" (less emotively, "a living thing inside a living thing"), which causes symptoms by wandering around a woman's body putting pressure on other organs. Even Charcot, who openly notes that hysteria is not an illness of the uterus, believes that a woman’s ovaries are still sensitive “hysterogenic zones.” Basically, it would appear as if even scientific theory and development was still emphasizing the importance  woman’s maternal role in Victorian society. 37.1 (2009): 21-36. [16], George Beard, a physician who cataloged an incomplete list including 75 pages of possible symptoms of hysteria,[17] claimed that almost any ailment could fit the diagnosis. Having done so the man's strong and vigorous intercourse alleviated the frenzy. There were many reasons for its decline. Although this treatment is now recognized as mere suggestion, it did help in the development of hypnosis (Tasca et al., 114). [13] Charcot's use of photography,[14] and the resulting concretization of women's expressions of health and distress, continued to influence women's experiences of seeking healthcare. French physician Philippe Pinel freed hysteria patients detained in Paris' Salpêtrière sanatorium on the basis that kindness and sensitivity were needed to formulate good care. [23] Maines stated that her theory of the prevalence of masturbation for hysteria and its relevance to the invention of the vibrator is a hypothesis and not proven fact. Over the course of the early 20th century, the number of patients of female hysteria sharply declined, and today it is no longer a recognized illness. [1], In Western medicine hysteria was considered both common and chronic among women. What most physicians in their ardor have left untouched and untreated is the hysterical psyche which gave rise to the symptom which has incapacitated the patient. [13] Though these earlier studies had shown that men were also prone to suffer from hysteria, including Freud himself,[5] over time, the condition was related mainly to issues of femininity as the continued study of hysteria took place only in women. [6], Through the Middle Ages, another cause of dramatic symptoms could be found: demonic possession. 21.2 (2006): 45-61. Female hysteria was once a common medical diagnosis for women, which was described as exhibiting a wide array of symptoms, including anxiety, shortness of breath, fainting, nervousness, sexual desire, insomnia, fluid retention, heaviness in the abdomen, irritability, loss of appetite for food or sex, (paradoxically) sexually forward behaviour, and a "tendency to cause trouble for others". This is the only way through which a state of complete health can be regained by removing all the sign and symptoms from which the patient is suffering. [1] In extreme cases, the woman may have been forced to enter an insane asylum or to have undergone surgical hysterectomy. Doctors would sometimes apply an electrical charge to the woman’s genitals as well (Starr and Aron, 374). ( Log Out /  Collini, Sara. The selection of homeopathic medicine for hysteria is based upon the theory of individualization and symptoms similarity by using holistic approach. Other cures for female hysteria included bed rest, bland food, seclusion, refraining from mentally taxing tasks (like reading) and sensory deprivation. Feminist writers such as Catherine Clément and Hélène Cixous wrote in The Newly Born Woman from a place of opposition to the theories proposed in psychoanalytical works, pushing against the notion that socially constructed femininities and hysteria are natural to being female. George Mason University. During this treatment, physicians would often interpret the woman’s cries of pleasure as cries of pain (Starr and Aron, 377). Mesmer identified a fluid within the body, of which he named “animal magnetism.” He believed that the magnetic action of the hands upon the diseased part of the body could treat the patient by interacting with the fluid (Tasca et al., 114) Basically, his theory suggests that the body gives off some sort of invisible force that can be manipulated to cure people of illness. French neurologist, Jean-Martin Charcot, who is considered to be the father of neurology, studied a variety of patients with hysteria at the Salpetriere hospital (Ross, 277). Management of Hysteria. Electronic. Cases of hysteria have commonly occurred in both males and females but, among females the number is far greater particularly in the age group of 14 to 25 years. [7] This was believed to be thinner than male seed and could be retained in the womb. physical welfare is of primary importance. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. [9] At the time female patients sought medical practitioners for the massage treatment of hysteria. No one method can be recommended unqualifiedly. Women of the era were often urged to keep small bottles of smelling salts within their handbags for them to smell if they felt a “hysterical paroxysm” come upon them (Tasca at al., 113). [5] He also denied that the womb could "move from one place to another like a wandering animal". Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. In fact, he found that many of his female patients imitated the seizures of epileptic patients in an attempt to seek attention (Ross, 277). Female Hysteria. Foul smells applied to the nose would drive it down, and pleasant scents at the vulva would attract it. [5], While most Hippocratic writers saw the retention of menstrual blood in the womb as a key problem, for Galen even more serious was the retention of "female seed". Hysteria is curable in nearly all cases. The Behavioural Treatment of Hysteria - Volume 134 Issue 2 - Julian Bird. Charcot's use of photography, and the resulting concretization of women's expressions of he… 1) Rachel P. Maines, The Technology of Orgasm (2001): Study of how "vibrator" developed as a treatment for female hysteria. [11][13] This would later lead to Freud's development of the Oedipus complex, which connotes femininity as a failure, or lack of masculinity. Close this message to … The most vehement negative statements associating feminism with hysteria came during the militant suffrage campaign. [6] Hysteria was referred to as "the widow's disease", because the female semen was believed to turn venomous if not released through regular climax or intercourse. Hysteria seems like a term that applies to people who are being a little overly emotional, so it may surprise you to learn that it was once a common medical diagnosis. Conventional therapy offers little to treat those with hysteria. The preferred treatments, however, was still married intercourse, as well as vaginal massaging techniques. The common treatments for female hysteria also reflect the gender relationships of the times when the "condition" was prevalent. But there are certain principles that can be followed. Starr, Karen E. and Lewis Aron. Some medical authors claim that the decline was due to gaining a greater understanding of the psychology behind conversion disorders such as hysteria. [8] If the patient was married, this could be completed by intercourse with their spouse. mental, treatment should be directed toward both the body and the mind. In the 16th and 17th centuries, hysteria was still believed to be due to the retention of humour or fluids in the uterus, sexual deprivation, or by the tendency of the uterus to wander around the female body causing irritability and suffocation. Another very obscure form of treatment for hysteria during the 1800s is that of “Mesmerism.” Invented by German physician Franz Mesmer, the treatment involves a mixture of hypnosis and “animal magnetism” in order to cure a woman of her hysterical behaviour. We use the word not with any scientific precision, but because it is the name most commonly given to a kind of enthusiasm that has degenerated into habitual nervous excitement. 8 (2012): 110-119. This decline has been attributed to many factors. Skip to main content Accessibility help We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Some physicians regarded all contraceptive practices as injurious to women for this reason. Furthermore, the term hysteria, once the focus of intensive treatment efforts and research, can scarcely be found in modern mainstream psychiatric literature. The symptoms of hysteria can be found as early as 1900 BC in the Egyptian papyri (the actual word hysteria is derived from hystera, Greek for uterus). Were Especially sensitive areas for convulsions and tremors ( Alvarado, Carlos S. “ hysteria... A Historical note on Blanche Wittmann. ” Australian Journal of Psychohistory is a of! 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