Causes and Symptoms of Hysteria

Hysteria is generally considered to be a state in which a person experiences uncontrollable fear and other negative emotions. However, technically speaking, there is no longer any condition such as hysteria. Most modern doctors and psychiatrists have stopped using this term, as it has been found to be rather vague and inclusive of a variety of symptoms that are now better understood, and known to result from separate, entirely different conditions. Over the centuries, hysteria has meant many different things, and today it is mostly a casual, colloquial term whose meaning is not very precise. However, in some circles, the idea of hysteria as a medical condition still persists, as studied and popularized by Sigmund Freud.

Originally, hysteria was thought to be a type of sexual dysfunction leading to madness among women. The term used was almost always “female hysteria”, and the condition was thought to be the result of a lack of sexual intercourse. This was sometimes “treated” by mechanically inducing orgasms, without any overtly sexual activity, due to the prevailing negative attitudes towards the sexuality of women. Towards the end of the 19th century however, the approach started to change, primarily due to the work of Jean-Martin Charcot, who is today known as the founder of modern neurology. Later, Freud, who studied under Charcot, did further work in this area, and even wrote a book, ‘Studies on Hysteria’. At the time, Freud’s explanation and diagnosis of hysteria seemed a lot more scientific than early theories, which often included supernatural elements.

However, over the years, these explanations did not seem to make sense in the light of more reliable and recent discoveries in the fields of psychiatry and neurology. Freud and Charcot’s theory of hysteria is therefore now considered to be an example of what is known as a “syndrome of convenience” – a medical condition that is not based in fact, but has been developed purely out of a need to explain symptoms that could not be explained, and an inability or unwillingness to accept such confusion and helplessness. Some scientists began to put forth this point soon after the development of Freud’s theories, but this did not stop their popularity till relatively recently.

Today, the symptoms that were once diagnosed as hysteria can usually be traced to a condition known as “conversion disorder”, sometimes to schizophrenia, or merely anxiety attacks, while in a few cases, no real explanation can be found.