St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1888-02-11
BENDING FORWARD.
SereO0s Disorder Which Comes Ot Com
prcssion OF blood Vessels.


precision os blood vessels.
Every one knows that STOPPING for.
warl. particularly after rising quickly
from the bed in the morning. when
the stomach is empty and the heart
has less than ordinary support from
the viscera below the diaphragnss -
very apt to occasion a form Of faint
ness with vertigo. not unlike that
which occurs in seasickness. We do
not at the moment speak Of the faint-
ness and giddiness from cerebral
anemia which arc directly consequent
upon suddenly assuming the effect after
long continuing in the rccumbent
posture. bu: of tho more alarming sem
sation of being In tho center OF objects
which are rapidly passing away. usual
" from left to righ.. with loss df power
to stand or even sit. and an almost
nightmare feeling of inability to call
for help or do any thing to avert .
catastrophe. while throughout tho cx-
rericncc tho sufferer retains acute cOIf-
sciousness.
This. we say, is familiar as one. at
least, of the effects not uncommOnly
produced by STOPPING forward under
the special conditions indicated. With
many other varieties Of the vertigo
consequent upon heart weakness or
cerebral anamia. observation or cx.
periencc has made us all acquainted.
We can not. however. help thinking
that the consequences Of even par
tial compression of veins Of the neck,
Offering an obstacle to the return OF
blood from the head. with its impors
,ant organs. are not SO well recognised
The peculiar form-or. more accurate
IL, the several forms-of headache dis
,inctly caused In this way when the
head is long bowed forward on tho
chest. bending the neck on itself. can
not fail to occur to every one; nor will
tho high tension of tho eyeball. the
turgid and heavy eyclids. the snuffing
nose. the deafness. with buzzing and
throbbing IN the cars the heavy
bre athing and the puffed and perhaps
flushed or darkencd color Of tho face.
resulting from the obstructed venons
circulation through the bcnded neck.
be forgotten.
There arc other and more periloua
though secondary. effects Of leaning
forward when the heart is weak or tho
blood vessels arc not as strong as they
ought to be. which should not bc over
looked. Beyond question the extra
strain upon the apparatus Of the cir
culation by any thing that impcdcs
the free passage Of the blood through
almost any part Of the venOus system
-isIpsre- severe and dangerous than n
physically equal strain thrown on the
arteries At least this is so in adult
life. and. without going further into
details in connection with the modus
operandi of the mischief to which VIC
point, it may be permissible to urge
that the subject is one to which at-
tention may he usefully directed.
The weakly and those who are not
unlikely to have hearts readily over
burlenel and blood vessels stretched
beyonil recovery. or even ruptured.
should be warned quite rs earnestly
against suddenly assuming. Of
too long retaining. any post
ures which do-however slightly
and partia lly-impcde tho return Of
blood through tho veins We know
how prolonged sitting may cause the
veins of the legs to extend and either
give way or permit tho extravasatiOn
Of their contents. When this sort Of
thing happens. even though in trifli ng
degree. in the case Of vessels directly
connected with such delicate organs
rs the eye. the ear and the brain. it is
easy to sec that tho results may be
very serious in their character; and
probably few postures commonly taken
up by persons who lead somewhat
sedentary lives are 81 prone to do mis-
chief unno,ice,l rs that Of leaning for
ward as at work at table which is
not sufficiently high to insure the
head being SO raised that the veins OF
the neck may not be in any way COM
pressed or the return Of blood from
the head embarrassed or delayed. We
see reason to believe that il this ap-
parently small matter were generally
understood there would be fewer heads
and heart troubles. and we will 60 so
far rs to say that some lives now lost
~woul6 ho c~vn6 Tomx1nn Innrpf