Observations on trance, or, Human hybernation [sic] / by James Braid.

Date:
1850
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Observations on trance, or, Human hybernation [sic] / by James Braid. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    cessive excitement and muscular effort beyond that of a state of ordinary repose, as this latter exceeds that more profound repose and inactivity realised during complete hybernation. Moreover, we have remarkable instances of pro- tracted fasting during disease. Thus, Macnish, in his chapter on Protracted Sleep, cites an instance of a patient who remained eight days without food or drink; and of another who, on one occasion, slept three weeks, and who, during that period, took not a particle of either food or diink; nothing could arouse him, even for a moment; yet his sleep seemed to becalm and natural! In his chapter on Catalepsy, also, he refers to the case of a Polish soldier, who fell into that condition from terror, and who remained for twenty days without nourishment. Whilst this pamphlet was going through the press, I was favoured with the following narrative of a case of trance, which occurred some years ago in a patient of John Woods, Esq., surgeon, Newry, and which he has kindly furnished to me for publica- tion. Mr. Woods writes :— The case of the young lady. Miss F. C, related to you by my esteemed friend, Mr. Waddell, was one of hysteria, terminat- ing in trance of four days' duration. It was not caused by her hearing of the death of her father, or any unpleasant news ; her father was dead some years at the time of her illness. She laboured under chlorosis, and, in consequence of this and her complexion being naturally very fair and pale, with white flaxen haii, she had a very corpse-like appearance. Her pulse, which was quick and chlo- rotic before the trance commenced, became soft and slow. Her breathing, although slow and weak, was always quite perceptible. She would open her eyes when pulled and shook by the arms, and then close them and fall asleep again. It was with great difficulty that she was forced to swallow a few tea- spoonsful of drink for three or four days; and any
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