Whenever
this woman came near her she was at once seized with violent
trembling; this ended in a few minutes with vomiting and great
mental and physical prostration lasting several hours. Her
husband would have sent the woman away, but Mrs. X insisted on
her remaining, as she was a good servant, in order that she might
overcome what she regarded as an unreasonable prejudice. The
effort was, however, too great, for upon one occasion when the
woman entered Mrs. X's apartment rather unexpectedly, the latter
became greatly excited, and, jumping from an open window in her
fright, broke her arm, and otherwise injured herself so severely
that she was confined to her bed for several weeks. During this
period, and for some time afterward, she was almost constantly
subject to hallucinations, in which the Indian woman played a
prominent part. Even after her recovery the mere thought of the
woman would sometimes bring on a paroxysm of trembling, and it
was not till after her confinement that the antipathy
disappeared.
Circular or periodic insanity is a rare psychosis. According to
Drewry reports of very few cases have appeared in the medical
journals. "Some systematic writers," says Drewry, "regard it as a
mere subdivision of periodic insanity (Spitzka).
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