Trauma, Hysteria, & Psychogenic Illness

This is the 3rd of a 3 part post that walks through everything I learned throughout years of mental illness and how I came to learn it. I hope that this summary of 6 years of research and experience will help others who are sorting thru the mess of the mind. Topics in this 3 pt series include: how trauma affects the body & can mimic and even cause psychosis, how psychogenic illnesses work + my own experiences w them (paralysis, fainting episodes, movement disorders, etc), Poly Vagal Theory, the antiquated diagnosis of hysteria and it’s relevance (despite its lack of use today bc of its derogatory connotations and sexist, ridiculous history), and more.

view the referenced photos/illustrations/video examples and the written post here.

cover art

example of the scarier (“demonic-possession-looking”) movement disorders mentioned in story

example of what a doctor called “possible choreiform athetosis”—a different type of movement disorder mentioned in the audio post