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A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man

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burningdinner
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
I smell a new version of Yellow Wallpaper.
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Jack_Burton
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
Being in IT, I've seen plenty of males go "hysterical."

When the sh17 hits the fan, some people can't hang.

Once you realize that panic doesn't solve anything, and DOES take years off of your life, you can begin to attack tough situations with considerate, decisive action; Allowing things that are beyond your control to agonize and frustrate you is really just a prescription to spiraling into a smoking crater in the ground.

Effexor is good at easing this affect too.
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sybann
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
So skimmed here but, Cruise haz womb?
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Cerridwen
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
Have any of you read the book "Regeneration" by Pat Barker? If not, it's a really great read. It's set at Craiglockhart War Hospital during WWI and speculates about what the poet Siegfried Sassoon would have experienced when he was sent there for mental incapacity after protesting the war and refusing to return to the front. It incorporates history and fiction in a really interesting way and delves into the world of turn-of-the-century psychiatry and post-traumatic stress disorder among war vets.

Highly recommended.
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the dodo, the cuckoo, and the nene
01/08/09

@Cerridwen: I had to read it for a history class in college. It was excellent, I agree
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Flackette Goes Retro
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
Men can definitely have hysteria. My brother freaks the fuck out about things to the point of making himself vomit and shake. I tend to go the calm resignation route myself.
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Scout
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man

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PrairieGirl
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
The Dad of one of my friends woke up one morning to discover he'd gone blind. After being in the hospital for a couple of hours his sight magically came back. Diagnosis: hysterical blindness. (He was getting remarried in a couple of weeks and was freaking out about it.) I've witnessed another friend of mine, who at the prospect of having to go on a boat, break out in hives, have a jagged crying fit and heart palpitations so bad we had to take him to the hospital. Both men. Also, ones a psychiatrist, the other a psychologist.
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J.D.Regent
01/07/09

@PrairieGirl: yes, the men in my family are famous for multiple "heart attacks" which turn out to be panic attacks, but not before a hefty ER bill.
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Lymed
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
Many people look at a diagnosis of somatization disorder as no better than a diagnosis of hysteria. The diagnosis is given when a patient presents with multiple symptoms, usually including severe pain, for which there is no discernable cause. The diagnosis basically says that, because the doctors can't find a cause, it must be psychological with no physical cause.

Patients are then no longer taken seriously when they present with new symptoms, that could be the sign of a dangerous condition.
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LaComtesse
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
Modern psychologists better not try to demystify the female ailment of "the vapors" as in fanning oneself coyly while breathing in a Blanche Devereaux voice "Oh Lordy I got the vapors!"

You can have hysteria, fine, BUT DON'T YOU TAKE MY VAPORS!
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J.D.Regent
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
I think "male hysteria" is commonly referred to as "indigestion, low back pain, and general grumpiness." No?
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Lymed
01/07/09

@J.D.Regent: I have male hysteria! Who knew?
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Fridge Hussy : Is finally heading back to uni!
01/07/09

@J.D.Regent: "The missus' nagging gettin ya down!" Or sommet.
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Kivrin
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
My great grandfather was apparently severely "shell-shocked" after WWI. Thunder and lightning used to, like, send him back to the war zone, so he'd freak out and make everyone hide in the cellar in the dark -- no candles allowed (can't let the enemy see you). He passed this storm-time behavior to my grandfather, who in 1983 made us go into the basement during a tornado warning and WOULD NOT let my mom use candles or a flighlight. I was 3 years old and terrified, and this experience sparked a lifelong phobia of tornados in yours truly.

So yes, male hysteria is probably responsible for the tornado nightmares I still have today. Good times.
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Kivrin
01/07/09

@Kivrin: *flashlight
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CharlotteTrampling
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
eh? Menz have always been fragile people except that they always haz womens to calm them down, fluff up their egos, let them cry in their laps then give them sex.

It was a good deal for them. When Ms. Trampling has been a girlfriend, she has found these to be some of the many many duties of the hetero girlfriend.

Not surprising that without a significant amount of male priviledge, many male personalities collapse.

Ms. Trampling has little patience nowadays for such weaklings.
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egg cream
01/07/09

@CharlotteTrampling: Egg Cream has just noticed how you always refer to yourself in the third person, and is wondering if there is some joke she's missing.
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So Irish
01/07/09

@egg cream: So Irish is thinking of becoming a copy-cat, and doing this too!

*So Irish also haz bad gremmer
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CharlotteTrampling
01/07/09

@So Irish: @egg cream: @olivia2.0: Ms. Trampling has been told what is hysterical on a blog comment is creepy in real life.
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Lymed
01/07/09

@CharlotteTrampling: We saw third person in real life, and it was called Suede.

Ok, maybe the Bravo Network doesn't count as real life.
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Eeva
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
There has never been a more appropriate illustration.

Tom Cruise: President of the Histeria Lane Neighbourhood Watch.
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sarah.of.a.lesser.god (aka Mrs. BrutallyHonestHobbit)
01/07/09

@Eeva: I love the illustration. But shouldn't this be "A Brief Hystery of Hysteria"?
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Eeva
01/07/09

@sarah.of.a.lesser.god (2009: a space ovumlord): Yes. Except it's histeria (not hersteria.) It's like how a Man Cold is worse than a regular cold: histeria is much more serious than girly stupid hysteria.
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whatsername
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
I totally love this story, that Tom Cruise is the decorative piccie (for so many reasons, and that I can slap my annoying male colleague uber dramatically and exclaim "stop being HYSTERICAL!"
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veronykah
01/07/09

@whatsergem: I was hoping there would be MORE photos...

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doggotmyshoes
01/07/09

In reply to A Brief History Of The Hysterical Man
I don't think that the sort of somatization he refers to in men post-war could possibly be the same root cause. Wouldn't that fall under "post-traumatic stress disorder?" And wasn't hysteria in women often linked to sex abuse (also post-traumatic stress)? Seems like somatization can be from many sources - is that articulated in the book?
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J.D.Regent
01/07/09

@doggotmyshoes: doesn't that seem to suggest that somatization all stems from trauma -- the same root cause? I'm not sure I understand what you are saying.
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Cerridwen
01/07/09

@J.D.Regent: I agree that the root cause is trauma of some sort, which is non-gender specific. Which kind of trauma - as a result of sexual abuse or war etc - seems to be somewhat gendered, though, which makes perfect sense to me.
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