Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-08-30
KEEPING MENTALLY FIT
BY JOSEPH JASTRoW.

and complex but alarming and dis
treSsing symptoms. and keep mentally
fit while bodily unfit. The apprehen-
sion and the nervous" state compli-
Gates as in the susceptible 1t dominates
the disease. That is the reason why
for many patients 1t takes a long time
for them 10 get well after they have
been cured. They may form the In
valid habit, and never quite return to
the right attitude toward their condi-
ton indispensable to mental fitness.
And as for the questionable practition-
ers. some few of them may be sincere
but deluded. and still further muddled
or consoled by finding that the delu-
sion pays.
All this must be taken into account
In understanding that branch or type
Of what DR.. Fishbein calls the "Medi-
cal FollieS," that deals with nervous
and mental cases. The idea of an
injection is just vague enough and
impressive enough to combine a touch
Of mystery with an art of mastery
One must be very wise to discover an
| element that once under the skin
| transforms your nerves and diSsipates
| your fears, and one must be very
competent to administer 1t and know
that it must be done Is times before
/ the charm works, provided the magi-
clans palm Is touched with gold.
1t is this mental injection admins
tered by suggestion rather than the
/ physical injection administered by
| syringe that induces the patient to
| take the treatment: and If 1t works
| and no quackery Is so hopeless as
not to work or seem TO work some Of
| the time-the cure may be attributed
| TO the same process Suggestion Is
mental injection
/ The theories back of quackery that
| make their pretensions plausible and
| attract the victims are many and
| strange Some OF them are outworn
| heritages from the past, like exercising
or magnetism or a medical astrology;
/ others are novel theories again pat
! termed upon earlier stages OF medical
| knowledge, and yet others are chal-
| lenges or protests against medical pro-
cedure as too materialistic, too unnat-
ural.
Yet the largest class Of all are those
| that initiate Tin reality parody the
| scientific support OF medical theory,
| and so, like patent medicines, adver-
tise directly or by implication that
/ this system" is new discovery OF
( q great SItC0iASJ 90
| yet unrecognized because Of professional
| jealousy. but moved by philanthropic
motives TO offer his discoveries and his
skill TO the suffering poor who can
afford TO pay. Such are mental In
| jections"
There is an apparatus. electric or
/ magnetic or iniectional or vibrational
! or chemical or polaric or whatever
| may approximate some recent proceed
ure In medical practice, and there Ii
i assurance and verbose explanation and
! testimonials and fiourishes OF degrees
and decorative symbols OF learning
4, Compared with all this panoply, sim
/ pie wholesome advice, encouragement
| and rational regimen seem too intelli-
| gible a procedure 10 require an adept
| specialist.
Yet In this enlightened day the no
| ton that people like TO be fooled In
matters of health may be discarded
| They don't; they are just trapped into
folly by their despair and the network
Of pretentious systems that flourish like
parasites on the advances Of medicine
including the medicine OF the mind.
| fCopyTtght, 1921