The Journal of Abnormal Psychology, vol 10 | Page 7

patient
or to relieve her. There was no local tenderness, no pain upon movement, but merely a
steady ache. No physical basis whatever for this trouble could be found. Her medicine for
the relief of it was discontinued, and so, too, were certain medicines she had been
obtaining for sleep.
Upon each visit the husband and wife had been informed by the physician that he did not
believe the trouble was organic in its nature, that he believed it depended upon some
ideas that the patient had, and that, furthermore, it was the result of some mental irritation,
compared for the purpose of fixing the point to a festering sore and which, if removed,
would permanently eliminate the liability of such seizures. The patient and her husband
were informed that the physician intended to delve to the bottom of this trouble and, by
deferring investigation as to its exact nature until the symptoms had practically
disappeared, a way was cleared to obtain their complete confidence, and at the same time
to overcome any unwillingness to accept a psychical explanation for such palpable
physical ills. This latter point is of importance in dealing with uneducated persons. For
the most part, they are intensely practical and materialistic, and a mere idea does not
seem to them to account for paralysis although, of course, such skepticism is usually
accompanied by superstitious credulity along other lines. Moreover, by establishing
himself as a sort of miracle worker (for so the cure was regarded), it would be understood
that curiosity was not the basis for the investigation into the domestic life of the patient
and her husband, but that a desire to do more good inspired it.
The physician started his investigation with the statement that he knew from past
experience that some conflict was going on between husband and wife; that there was
some source of irritation which caused these outbursts of symptoms on the part of the
patient, and that unless they told him what was behind the matter his help would be
limited to the relief of the present symptoms. It was firmly stated that any denial of such
discord would not be believed, and that only a complete confidence would be helpful.
The patient, who had been listening to this statement with lowered eyes and nervously
intertwining fingers, then burst out as follows: There WAS trouble between them and
there always would be until it was settled right,--this with much emphasis and emotional
manifestation. So long as he insisted on living where they did, just so long would she
quarrel with him. She did not like the neighbors, especially the woman downstairs, she

did not like the room, she did not like anything about the place or the neighborhood,
hated the very sight of it and would never cease attempting to move from there. It came
out on further questioning that the woman downstairs, whom the patient particularly
disliked, was a storm center in that the wife was jealous of her, although she adduced no
very good reasons for her attitude. Moreover, the patient stated that she wished to move
to a district where she had friends, though other sources of information showed that these
friends were of a rather unsavory character. Her husband was absolutely determined not
to move from his house. He stated that he would rather have her go away and stay away
than move from there; that the rent was too high in the place where she wanted to move,
and that the rent was suitable where they were. Moreover, for his part, he hated his wife's
desired neighborhood and would never consent to changing his residence from the
present place to the other. It came out that her fainting and vomiting spells and headaches
usually followed bitter quarrels, and on other matters these symptoms usually placed the
victory on her side. On this particular point, however, her husband had remained obdurate.
It was shown that the present attack of paralysis and aphonia, symptoms of an unusually
severe character, followed an unusually bitter quarrel which had lasted for a whole day
and into the night of the attack.
The question arises at this point, "Why did this attack take the form of a paralysis?" At
first this seemed unaccountable, but later it was found that the old woman for whom the
patient had been caring had a "stroke" with loss of the power to speak, though no aphonia.
The patient had gone to work as a sort of nurse for the old woman under protest, for she
did not wish to do anything outside of her own light housekeeping, although the added
income was sorely needed since work was slack in her husband's place of employment.
The pain in her side caused her to quit work as nurse, much