See more. The worst fear of most patients is being told.

SIMON WESSELY1 From the Royal Bethlem and Maudsley Hospitals, London SYNOPSIS On the basis of a literature review it is concluded that mass hysteria can be divided into two syndromes. One form, to be called 'mass anxiety hysteria', consists of episodes of acute anxiety, occurring mainly in schoolchildren. Treatment consists of separating the participants and the prognosis is good. To get technical, mass hysteria is known as mass psychogenic illness or mass sociogenic illness. It occurs in any age group and prior tension is present. Hysteria information including symptoms, diagnosis, misdiagnosis, treatment, causes, patient stories, videos, forums, prevention, and prognosis. The famed Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud had studied with Charcot, so he had first-hand experience observing patients who had been diagnosed with the ailment as well as Charcot's treatment methods. The mystery of hysteria played a major role in the early development of psychoanalysis. Hysteria: Is the Diagnosis Correct? Differential diagnosis list for Hysteria may include: While a diagnosis is usually made by excluding infectious, allergic, and toxic … According to Maines' investigations, at various points, high-pressure showers or hoses were also used to treat hysteria (as was clitoridectomies it should be said). The use of biofeedback as a possible treatment is also proposed. Mass hysteria definition, a condition affecting a group of persons, characterized by excitement or anxiety, irrational behavior or beliefs, or inexplicable symptoms of illness. Mass hysteria: two syndromes? Mass Hysteria 101. Treatments for Hysteria including drugs, prescription medications, alternative treatments, surgery, and lifestyle changes. Motor symptoms without a discernible organic basis, or "hysteria," continue to be a treatment challenge. Whether or not a perceived health threat is real, mass or epidemic hysteria -- alias mass sociogenic illness or mass psychogenic illness -- is a very real … See more. Galen, a prominent physician from the second century, wrote that hysteria was a disease caused by deprivation in particularly passionate women: hysteria was quite often in virgins, nuns, widows and, rarely, in married women. Text via Victorian Era. The data do not support the concept of epidemic neuromyasthenia as being ‘mass hysteria’ as mentioned by McEvedy and Beard, but rather seem to support the suggestion that diagnosis can be made by use of a combination of logical, objective medical and physiological measures. 3-5 Dependence fostering a close‐knit family structure is common in rural India and may have contributed to the development of family hysteria, as alluded to in an earlier report. The illness may entail loss or alteration of function, and patients unconsciously manifest physical symptoms.

Groupthink seems to occur most often when a respected or persuasive leader is present, inspiring members to agree with their opinion. Mass hysteria definition, a condition affecting a group of persons, characterized by excitement or anxiety, irrational behavior or beliefs, or inexplicable symptoms of illness. Treatment should be directed towards the underlying stressors but the outbreak may be prolonged. Yet Canadian psychiatrist Francois Sirois believes the answer lies not in society’s treatment of females, but their biology.

Groupthink is sometimes positive but is more often seen in a negative light, particularly in the U.S. and other countries that value individual opinion. To get technical, mass hysteria is known as mass psychogenic illness or mass sociogenic illness.