Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-09-02
DOCTORS DECEPTI0NS.
The are Numerous, and are Often Rem
dered Necessary by Patients.
Authorizations of the Hysterical and the
Propriety of Humoring Them War
rants notwithstanding Obser-
vations of Physicians.
Detroit Journal.


little stoppages, from duct choked up,
from food pressing in the wrong place,
from a vext duodenuum, OF an agitated
pylorous. The deception practiced upon
human creatures is curious and enter
tanning. Nv friend sups late; he eats
some strong soup, then a lobster, then
tart, and he dilutes these esculent varl-
cites with wine. The next day
call upon him. He is going to sell
his house in London and to
retire into the country. He is alarmed
for his eldest daughters health.
His expenses are hourly increasing, and
nothing but a timely retreat can save
him from ruin. All this, - says Sydney
Smith, els the lobster, and, when over
excited nature has had time to manage
this testaceous incambrance, the dauGh-
ter RECEIVERS, the finances are in good or
der and every rural idea effectually eX-
Guided from the mind. IN the same
manner old friendships are destroyed by
toasted cheese and hard sailed meat has
led to suicide. Unpleasant feelings OF
the body produce correspondent sensa-
tions in the mind, and great scene OF
wretchedness is sketched out by mOrseI
of indigestible and misguided food. or
such infinite consequence to happiness IS
it to study the body. -
OF COURSE THEY Do.
One of Detroit g foremost practitioners
of medicine quoted this language from
% Aiken 3 Science and Practice of Medi-
cine. - in answer TO the Journals IN
ouirv if it was true that doctors really
deceived people who imagined themselves
sick, by humoring their fancy and by
prescribing some harmless medicine for
the imagined ailment.
''The mental depression resultant from
dyspepsia, - the doctor continued, SIS
often extremely distressing, varying IN
degree from slight detection and i'll
humor, or irritable temper, TO the e1-
treme of melanchOlia or suicidal mono
sfania. In most cases when people
imagine they are seriously i'll, there
is q cause for it, and usually dyspep-
STA, frequently in q mild form, IS
at the bottom To attempt to cure
such cases by prescribing for the
imagined illness is sheer folly, and 1
would not do it; neither do l believe that
any regular practitioner would stoop to
deceive d patient in such cases. But l
do not mean to say that / would not prac-
tice deception under certain clrcum-
stances. If, for instance, 1 could save
life or cure patient Of some real disease
by no other way than by making
the patient believe that black is
white, in other words, by deceiv-
inc the person in some way, l
would not hesitate a minute However,
in such cases, as mentioned before,
where dyspepsia usually is the cause of
the imagined troubles, l simply pre-
scribe some medicine to tone up the sYs-
TEN. l do not give this medicine to
cure, but l try TO do that by working on
the patients mind, which is to certain
extent, disordered. This is not very
difficult when the physician is ac-
quaiuted with the patient and has some
influence over her. 1 say her because
such cases occur very much more fire.
quently among females than among men.
CASE IN POINT.
81 am treating q lady now who had
not left her house for two years. She
had made herself believe that she could
not walk After awhile l told her that
she could walk and that she must walk
TO the next corner. She did, and sur
prised herself. Little by little 1 ex-
tended the distance, and now she has
almost reganed her former strength.
She is out every day, and occasionally
covers great distances on tricycle..
On q recent Sunday this lady went to
church for the first time in more than
two years
Does imaginary sickness ever produce
real sickness, dOctOr?'
cit usually does, if not cured in the
beginning. You see, these people find
happiness in visionary misery; their mind
is at rest when nursing some fancied
aches or pans OF the body. They like 10
be coddIed, nursed and petted, and the
attentions they receive from those who
love them tend all the more to make
them victims of real disorder of mind
and fancied disorder of body. In imagi-
nation they undergo all the pains COM
mon to the maladies they assume as
theirs: but these aches are overcome by
the comforts with which they are sur
rounded. However, they refuse to do
anv work whatever, or even 10 stir,
thinking they cannot, and the result IS
that in the course of time their muscles
get tiabby and their limbs grow lame and
stiff; or they imagine they cannot eat
this or that, and their peculiar appetite,
or the loss Of it, viii cause some serious
disorder.
JUST NEED CONFUSION TO EXERT THEM
SELVES.
nave dIOlltI patient III a OSEAlAA
whose case Is similar. She was living
with her brother in the interior of tie
state and was ailing in her mind for some
time. She imagined that she could not
do any kind of work no matter how light,
and that she could not even lift a feath-
erweight l think ! III cure her after 1
have known her longer and obtained con-
troll of her mind. Her brother came to
see me not long ago TO learn what pro-
gress had been made. While talking
with him I said: Nov, look here; you
have made q GOOD home for your sister;
You have supported her and surrounded
her with all the comfort and luxury de-
siraIIe, and she never wanted for any
thing Surprising now You were to cast
her of cntirely-take her by the neck
and Kick her out-you would be surprised
at the amount of physical labor that
woman could perform thrown upon her
own resources.
"Au0ther case I have at present is
that OF q man who came TO me some time
ago with a long tale Of his aches and
pains He was sure that he was afflicted
with some terrible disease. lie imagined
that he could not eat this or that or the
other, and in fact be had become but a