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A Few Cases of Unconscious Wanderings [Quelques cas de fugues inconscientes]. (Rev. de l'Hyp., May, 1900.) Raymond

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 February 2018

Extract

Many of the cases which are now called hysterical wanderings were formerly classified as epileptic. Raymond characterises as epileptic sudden wanderings of short duration. Hysterical wanderings (“fugues”), on the contrary, may take weeks or even months, and are not recognised by those who come in contact with the patient or speak to him. Consecutive amnesia is complete in the two cases. The first case ecorded is that of a man who a few years ago had a wandering lasting eight days, during which he went from Nancy to Brussels. On December 15th, 1899, he had an attack lasting eleven hours; on the 16th, one lasting three days, during which he went to his brother's house, slept and dined there without exciting suspicion, etc. In this case a nervous heredity prepared the soil, intermittent fever weakened his powers of resistance, and the exciting cause of the neurosis was overwork. As a rule, hypnotism helps to reveal the course of these wanderings, and is a means of cure; but this patient is not hypnotisable. The second case is that of a girl æt. 16 years, hasty tempered and difficult to manage. At the age of fourteen years, she had her first attack of wandering. Her last, quite recently, lasted four weeks. She is hysterical and not vicious. Raymond believes hypnotism will cure her.

Type
Epitome of Current Literature
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1901 

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