Benign Stupors: A Study of a New Manic-Depressive Reaction TypeHoch, August
Science
Benign Stupors: A Study of a New Manic-Depressive Reaction Type
Hoch, August
Manic-depressive illness; Stupor
Then about nine months after admission, while in the
condition just described, she developed a lobar pneumonia.
During it she remained the same. But during convalescence
she began to speak and eat.
4. A period followed lasting six months during which she
was up and about, but sat or stood around a good deal. On
the other hand, she helped the nurses a little when urged.
Her face was often stolid, again she looked about. At times
(even nearly to the end) she drooled and soiled. She said
little. At no time was she resistive. On other occasions
she smiled or laughed, not always on provocation, or she
showed little playful tendencies, such as throwing a pillow
about the room, tearing leaves from the plants, taking the
doctor’s arm and walking down the hall, asking him to kiss
her. At such times she often looked quite bright, keen,
alert and amused. Towards the end she would give at times
playful answers, such as “I came to-day,” or “This is the
Hall of Fame.” This tapered off, so that by December, 1910,
she was perfectly well.
_Retrospectively_, the patient claimed not to remember the
upset at the dinner, or what happened afterward, although
recalling the trip to the Observation Pavilion. She denied
any memory of the journey to the hospital, but could tell
what ward she came to. How well the condition after that
was recalled, was not inquired into, except that she could
or would not explain further the utterances during the
first period. For the stupor period it is stated that she
remembered many external facts, but it is not clear in
which period they occurred.
_Catamnestic Note._ May, 1913: She has worked efficiently,
and is said to have been perfectly well.
CASE 3.--_Mary F._ Age: 21. Admitted to the Psychiatric
Institute June 28, 1902.
_F. H._ The mother died when the patient was five. The
father was living, an alcoholic and reckless man. Four
brothers and sisters died in infancy.
_P. H._ The patient was the only surviving child. She was
brought up in a convent and orphan asylum until 11, when
her father remarried. At 12 she had to go to work, hence
she had but little education. She was bright, efficient,
well liked by her employers (in one position five years).
As to her peculiarities, she was thought to be, perhaps, a
little headstrong, and was also described as always very
exact, rather quick-tempered and inclined to be irritable
when crossed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account