How to Care for the Insane: A Manual for Nurses — John Shaqi
How to Care for the Insane: A Manual for NursesGranger, William D.
Science
How to Care for the Insane: A Manual for Nurses
Granger, William D.
Psychiatric nursing
The delusions of mania are largely of grandeur and self-exaltation; the
patient thinks himself in the best of health, and very strong, or of a
superior mind, or, that he is a great singer, poet, actor, or preacher;
perhaps, taking a higher flight, he thinks himself possessed of the wealth
of Vanderbilt, or that he is the Pope, or the President, or even God
himself.
Sometimes the excitement comes on in paroxysms, lasting a few days or
weeks, with periods, more or less prolonged, of comparative mental quiet.
_Melancholia._--In melancholia the expression of the face often tells the
character of the disease; the eyes are downcast, the lines of the face are
lengthened, and the whole appearance is that of unhappiness.
In this form of insanity the patient may refuse to speak or interest
himself in any thing, or he may moan, groan and cry, and walk back and
forth wringing his hands; when he is quiet, the mind, however, may be very
active and full of delusions, which occupy it to the exclusion of every
thing, driving away sleep, and making him indifferent to the taking of
food or attending to his most necessary wants; sometimes the patient talks
a great deal, but always about his delusions, which are generally
connected with himself, his family, or his affairs.
Melancholiacs are often tortured by fears, and, therefore, become frenzied
and as wild and violent as in mania; or they may be very suspicious,
thinking that some one is persecuting them, or poisoning their food, or
following to kill them. On account of their delusions they frequently
refuse food, they generally sleep poorly, and are often very suicidal.
_Dementia._--This form of insanity is most frequently the result of acute
mania or melancholia, and comes after the force and intensity of the
disease has spent itself, leaving the mind crippled and weakened. The
perceptions are blunted and distorted, memory fails, the reasoning powers
are weakened, the will has ceased to control, the emotions and appetites
are dormant or changed, and the mind may become almost a blank, though in
the narrow circle of thought there is left remains of delusions,
illusions, and hallucinations. The patient is frequently careless of the
ordinary necessities and decencies of life, and requires constant care.
There are degrees of dementia: it may be slight, partial, or nearly
complete. During the first few months or years dementia often ends in
recovery, but, as it continues, the case becomes more and more hopeless.
_Monomania._--This is a term belonging to common speech, but there is not
an agreement of opinion as to the existence of such a special form of
insanity, nor among those who believe in it, as to what it is and what are
its symptoms.
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