Hysterical Symptom Diagnosis, Part 1
The origin of the word hysterical
I love etymology. Origins of words can reveal a lot. And sometimes, it can be hysterically funny – except perhaps in the case of the word “hysterical.”
The word hysterical is synonymous with the words psychosomatic or neurotic. It refers to physical illness which has no identifiable physical origin. Historically, psychiatrists used this label as an explanation for those who are “chronically ill.” The patients are believed to be expressing internal conflicts by persistently complaining of physical symptoms.
The root word of hysterical is thousands of years old. It comes from a Greek word, hystera. It is the word for uterus. Perhaps you already have noticed how similar it is to the word hysterectomy.
Medieval science and hysterical symptom diagnosis
No offense guys, but as far as I can tell, most of the doctors over the centuries were men. You probably know that most people who have autoimmune diseases or invisible illnesses are women. Male doctors could not explain illnesses that they did not experience, so they blamed the feature which makes women distinct – the uterus.
Today we have blood tests, x-rays, MRI’s, DNA testing, and ultrasound machines. Therefore in our modern scientific world, the dinosaur called hysterical diagnosis, as I call it, ought to be extinct. I wish it were.
Recent example of hysterical symptom diagnosis
A few months ago, I saw a friend take a hard fall onto concrete. After we iced her face, we took her to the ER for x-rays. We worried since she is over seventy years old, but her x-rays were fine.
She spent two weeks in the hospital. She could not stand on her own, and it seemed like she was afraid she might fall again. They ran some tests, but no definitive diagnosis was made.
Still not able to walk, my friend moved to a rehab center. Two weeks of physical therapy and we were all baffled how hard it was for her to walk. It was mystifying since her x-rays were all right.
After my friend spent several weeks using a wheelchair, a doctor finally repeated the x-rays. She had a fractured pelvis. We were stunned.
The lessons
1) Even I believed the “x-rays are fine” report. I know my friend is not hysterical. I should have doubted the x-rays earlier.
2) There is no excuse for not repeating the x-rays sooner. None of the doctors doubted the x-ray machine or x-ray technician or the doctor who read the x-rays. I am afraid that the only one who was doubted was my friend.
Funny thought: I was thinking that it’s too bad that they weren’t right. Too bad a hyster-ectomy can’t actually remove an invisible illness. I think what we actually need is a hysteria-ectomy to remove the hysteria – but not from the patient! Maybe we ought to remove the hysteria from those who doubt the patient.
Stay tuned! Next time: Hysterical Symptom Diagnosis, Part 2; the most hysterical diagnosis ever!
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Loved the funny thought. As I was reading this I was reminded of a George Carlin line where he asked ” Shouldn’t a Hernia really be a Hisneia” and a “Hysterectomy ought to be a Herterectomy”.
BWHAhaha.
That example of your friends x-rays is a good one. Too many times people on Medicare are not allowed the same tests as often as younger people with good insurance. (and people without insurance really have it rough) My primary doctors always consider if Medicare and/or my supplement will pay before ordering anything.
Sad but true.
excellent blog Kelly. You speak the truth. I can’t tell you how many of my friends were told it is in your head by a couple of doctors until they found a doctor that took the time to repeat everything and took in all of their symptoms as a whole. You have to keep on keeping on with finding a dr. that will repeat everything and will take in your symptoms as a whole and not just rely on what the tests say. That goes for any disease. I know it is a pain to keep looking for and changing drs. but we have to. We have to in order to get the proper treatment so our bodies stop damaging themselves. I have noticed you write about the facts of RA and I write more about the emotions of RA. We should team up lol.
Given the history of repression and subjugation of women, it wouldn’t be surprising if many actual problems arose as a result of that: depression, anxiety and who knows what physical problems. I’m sure the diagnosis of “hysteria” was in part a (perhaps partly subconscious) effort to keep women in their assumed place. My mother wanted to be a doctor and was told women didn’t do that. So she had three kids and struggled with mental health her whole life …
Hi Kelly!
I recently found your blog on Rheumatoid Arthritis, and I wanted to reach out. I’m the blog coordinator for EverydayHealth.com. We’re currently recruiting people to write a weekly blog post about their various health conditions and I thought you might be interested.
Everyday Health has over 25 million monthly unique visitors to their website, and there is a lot of potential exposure and traffic to come from blogging with the market leader in online health information. It’s also an excellent platform to promote education and awareness of issues associated with RA, and any cutting edge research or advice.
Let me know if this is something that you’re interested in and might like to talk more about. I enjoyed reading some of your old posts, and I think you have a unique perspective that Everyday Health readers would love for you to share.
Thanks so much!
Lee McAlilly
Blog Coordinator, EverydayHealth.com
lmcalilly (at) waterfrontmedia (dot) com
Thanks, Kelly. My RA taught me to trust myself. Growing up in Japan, I was taught to respect and not question doctors. The example of your friend confirms my new belief that doctors, medical technicians are human and technology can fail. But the pain is real. The pain tells us that something is not right. I have become an advocate for myself. I need to speak up and question the doctor when I know there is something wrong with me. I hope your friend recovered nicely.