The year is 1815, the Narrator’s husband, John, writes
two mad experts by the name of Phillipe Pinel and Samuel Tuke…
Dear Dr. Pinel and Samuel Tuke,
Hello, my name is John and I am writing to you in need
professional advice. I am a physician,
father, and husband to beautiful woman. Although the married life is a
wonderful one, I am greatly concerned with my wife’s behavior. She experiences
bouts of great sadness and tiredness, to the point where she can’t perform
daily activities without the help of me or my sister. From my professional experience
as a physician, I know it’s important to restrict her behavior as much as
possible. The past few days she has entered these sessions where she spends
great lengths of time staring at the wall paper as if she sees something I can’t.
Some mornings when I come in to check on her there’s evidence of the wall paper
being torn and scratched. I fear she’s reached a point of no return. Please
help me understand her.
Best regards,
John
Dr. Pinel responds to John in the form of a letter…
Dear John,
Unfortunately, I
can’t diagnose your wife without seeing her myself but from your description I
have a bit of an idea of what is going on. Based on what you’ve told me I
believe she has frequent episodes of mania accompanied by delirium. This could
possibly be caused by the abuse of alcohol, hunger, illness, injury, or it
could be hereditary. Is there history of mental illness in the family? As far
as treatment would go I would suggest the use of moral treatment. This type of
treatment is very important as it manages the symptoms instead of treating the
actual illness. Many experts, such as Samuel Tuke and myself, have recently
discovered its benefits. I hope you find this information helpful. If you find
yourself with any more questions or would like to set up a visit, let me know.
Best,
Dr. Phillipe Pinel
Samuel Tuke responds in the form
of a visit- 18 June.
Tuke arrives midday and I bring him
upstairs to visit my wife. When we go to enter the room the door is locked. I
knocked and asked that she open, allowing both me and Samuel to enter. She
responds, “I can’t. The key is down by the front door under the plantain leaf!”
Of course, I ran down to retrieve the key. When we unlocked the door to let
ourselves in we were astonished by what we saw. “She [I] kept on creeping just
the same, but she [I] looked at me [him] over her [my] shoulder.” As she continued
to circle the room with her shoulder brushing up against the wall she said
looked me dead in the eyes and said, “I’ve got out at last, in spite of you and
Jane, And I’ve pulled off most of the paper, so you can’t put me back!” At this
point, Tuke and I left the room to discuss what we had just witnessed. Tuke
said he’s seen this before. According to him, my wife would be diagnosed with
what he calls mania. He does not have a degree so he doesn’t like to make speculation
as to what is causing her distress but he says some forms of treatment can help,
especially moral treatment. After providing the patient with a combination of exercise,
a good diet, and a pleasant atmosphere you should see an improvement in their
symptoms.
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