Thoughts on insanity and its causes, and on the management of the insane : to which are appended observations on the report for 1850, of the Lunatic Asylum of the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire / By a Mechanic [W. Williamson].

  • Williamson, William
Date:
1851
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Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Credit: Thoughts on insanity and its causes, and on the management of the insane : to which are appended observations on the report for 1850, of the Lunatic Asylum of the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire / By a Mechanic [W. Williamson]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    M fied, that the risks of hurting or being hurt, shall be less during the process of application. But sometimes to evade would not be right. For instance, I was once placed in a dilemma by a patient with a question, to which if I had answered yes, it would have been not only feeding his delusion, but it would have been a falsehood; if I had evaded by not answering, it would have shown want of moral courage, and I should have lost moral power over him. So, as quick as thought I answered, no ; and, as I rather expected, as quickly received a blow on the face, which caused a black eye. I turned away without showing any resent ment, and when I again visited him, there appeared an evident change for the better; for, without any allu sion on my part, he readily blamed himself, and ex pressed sorrow at having caused me pain; from which I was persuaded that in this case I had pursued the right course. As to the black eye, we should always be willing not only to “ buy the truth,” but also to pay for it too. Though “ the irritated rebound of an insane mind cannot be crushed” by man, yet, in many cases, the first indication of recovery is just at the moment when it feels itself overcome, and it is frequently our duty to bring about that crisis. That such crisis may sometimes be brought about by manoeuvre, I grant; but then, it must be akin to the guile by which the apostle caught the Galatians, it must be of an innocent kind; and, moreover, the patient must be prevented from perceiving the plot, or the spell will be broken. It would give a positive advantage to some patients, in following their propensities, if they were aware, that whatever mischief they did, no apparatus would be applied. There are others, again, w r hose destructive impulses are strong, who yet are conscious of their state, and so dread the idea of being carried away in their apparently ineffectual struggles against their pro pensities, that it is a relief to them to be put under such restraint during the paroxysm; and many have expres sed thankfulness, when it is passed, that they have been prevented doing mischief. It is easier to imagine than describe the feelings of a patient, who, “ when he came to himself,” and made enquiry for his clothes, was in»
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