Mrs. A. is twenty-two years old; Russian; married. She suffers
periodically from attacks of violent headaches, lasting several
days. Family history is good. The patient was brought up in the
fear of ghosts, evil spirits, magical influences, and diabolical
agencies. Mrs. A. is easily frightened, and has suffered from
headaches and pressure on the head for quite a long time, but the
pain became exacerbated some five years ago. The attack is sudden,
without any premonitory feelings, and lasts from eight hours to two
days. The headache often sets in at night, when she is asleep, and
she wakes up with frightful pain.
At the time of the first attack she was much run down. Otherwise
the patient is in good condition, but complains that her memory is
getting bad. Patellar reflex is exaggerated. Field of vision is
normal. The eyes show slight strabismus and astigmatism, corrected
by glasses which did not in the least diminish the intensity as
well as the frequency of the headaches.
Mrs. A. suffers from bad dreams and distressing nightmares, the
content of which she cannot recall in her waking state. She also
often has hallucinations, visions of two women wrapped in white,
pointing their fingers at her and running after her. She never had
any fall, nor any special worry or anxiety, never suffered from any
infectious diseases.
After a persistent inquiry, however, she gave an account of an
accident she met with when a child of eight. Opposite her house
there lived an insane woman of whom she was mortally afraid. Once
when the parents happened to be away, the insane woman entered
the house, caught the child, and greatly frightened her. Another
time she was sent out by her parents to buy something in a grocery
store. It was night and very dark. She bought the things and on
the way back she saw two women in white with hands stretched out
running after her. She screamed from great fright and ran home.
Mrs. A. is afraid to remain alone, and especially in the dark. She
is not so much afraid in the street as in the house. The two women
appear to her now and then, and she is mortally afraid of them.
The patient was put into hypnotic state. There was marked
catalepsy; the eyes were firmly closed, and she could not open them
when challenged. Suggestion of general well-being was given and she
was awakened. On awakening, she could not remember what had taken
place in the hypnotic state.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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