Evening star., 1939-05-23
Of Stars, Men
And Atoms
Notebook of Science Progress
In Field, Laboratory
And Study
By Thomas f. Henri.

By Thomas r. Henry.
Chronic rage at the world on the part
of persons with unstable nervous Sys-
TENS is basic cause for the malignant
high blood pressure which is one of the
leading causes of death of persons in
middle age, according to report made
to the National Research Council here
by DR.. Franz Alexander, noted Chicago
psychiatriSt.
Presenting case histories to support
his contention, DR.. Alexander stresses
that a constant high blood pressure is
a manifestation of anger which cannot
be expressed openly because of social
conventions and of which not even the
victim may be conscious.
Says DR.. Alexander in his report lust
made public by the National Research
Council:
I'm normal animal life fear and rage
find their expression in physical flight
or attack, for which the body prepares
itself under the influence of these emo
tions One important element in this
preparation is the increase in blood
pressure.
Human beings living in competitive
civilization are equally and perhaps even
more permanently exposed to fear and
hostile impulses. Yet they have much
less opportunity to give expression to
these feelings in physical combat. Social
life requires an extreme control of these
hostile impulses. Unsuccessful attempts
at repression are a neurotic form Of this
control
One of the best founded discoveries Of
psychoanalysis is that impulses which
are inhibited in their expression sustain
chronic tension which is apt to have
permanent effect on certain physio-
logical functions. An acute elevation of
the blood pressure is part of the normal
reaction to acute rage and fear. Our
assumption is that chronic inhibited
rage may lead to chronic elevation of
the blood pressure.
Such Inhibited rage never finds its
natural consummation in physical agrees
sion which is followed by fatigue when
the heightened blood pressure returns to
normal. Such accumulated and never
adequately expressed hostile aggressions
are like a foreign body which is the
source of perpetual irritation. The
organism is constantly in preparation to
fight"
The typical course of malignant high
blood pressure, says DR.. Alexander, Is
about as follows:
The maturing man or woman in the
course of life is more and more con-
fronted with the problems of making a
living and maintaining family, and at
the same time keeping up social position
and prestige. In our present civilization
these tasks unavoidably involve hostile
competitive feelings create fears and at
the same time require an extreme con-
troll of these hostile impulses.
Those who through constitution or
early training have required a greater
amount of inhibitions will be more likely
to repress their aggressive feelings, and
thus these will accumulate and increase
in intensity. These inhibitions make them
less effective in the struggle of life,
create feelings in inferiority, stimulate
their envy and increase their hostile
feelings toward their less inhibited and
more successful competitors. These hos
tilities in turn require greater amount
of control and thus a vicious circle is
set UP. The more one hates the more
one must repress the hate in order to get
along in the world, and the more the
blood pressure tends to remain abnor-
mally high.
Instead of in high blood pressure, DR..
Alexander says this chronic inhibition
of hate may find its expression in the
type of insanity known as the manic
Oppressive psychosis whose victims alter
nate between extreme frenzy and ex-
treme depression, or in paranoia, the
most dangerous and incurable type of
insanity, where all the hate is centered
on some one individual or object. 1t
may also be expressed in the way of the
habitual criminal who vents its hatred
of individuals by trying to do damage
to the world at large.
Once the malignant high blood pres
sure has become established it appar-
entity is irreversible and very little can
be done for the patient, except that life
may be prolonged by restricted living, DR..
Alexander says Something may be ac-
complished, he believes, if the cases can
be found early enough and some of the
basic conflicts responsible for the hatred
of the world removed. He cites three
cases of his own where blood pressure
was markedly reduced by producing a
prolonged period of emotional calm.
Claims have been advanced, Dr. Alex
ander says, that this malignant high
blood pressure runs in families and hence
that it must have some organic heredi-
tary basis. 1t may develop most easily,
he says, through combination of a
physically unstable vascular system and
chronic hatred. He also stresses that
children of neurotic parents are likely to
be made neurotic themselves through
the home environment, and hence most
likely to develop the syndrome.