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Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of, and finding treatments for, complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia, long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hysteria
In the early 1890s Freud published a series of articles on hysteria which popularized Charcot's earlier work and begun the development of his own views of hysteria. By the 1920s Freud's theory was influential in Britain and the USA. The Freudian psychoanalytic school of psychology uses its own, somewhat controversial, ways to treat hysteria.
Many now consider hysteria to be a legacy diagnosis (i.e., a catch-all junk diagnosis),<SUP id=cite_ref-4 class=reference>[5]</SUP> particularly due to its long list of possible manifestations: one Victorian physician cataloged 75 pages of possible symptoms of hysteria and called the list incomplete.<SUP id=cite_ref-5 class=reference>[6]</SUP>
Current theories and practices
Current psychiatric terminology distinguishes two types of disorder that were previously labelled 'hysteria': somatoform and dissociative. The dissociative disorders in DSM-IV-TR include dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugue, dissociative identity disorder, depersonalization disorder, and dissociative disorder NOS. Somatoform disorders include conversion disorder, somatization disorder, chronic pain disorder, hypochondriasis, and body dysmorphic disorder. In somatoform disorders, the patient exhibits physical symptoms such as low back pain or limb paralysis, without apparent physical cause.
Sorry to any gents who may be offended, I believe Cort is just bringing our illness into proper perspective. Perhaps many younger people and many men may not be aware of the struggles the female gender has had with modern medicine because many of the gains mine and previous generations of women fought for are now taken for granted. If you're not aware perhaps that may be taken as a sign of progress, but please do not discount this ugly legacy of misogyny. It's very much affected the way CFS has been and still is perceived.
Remove the person looking down and the ladder and then the introductory image is perfect!
I agree with your overall point; just a minor correction...........I'm on the "younger side" if 30s is considered younger still?!
Thank you, Cort, for seeing and saying one of the big elephant in the room things. It would be good for all of us -- regardless of gender -- to address this whenever it comes up, especially in the media. It's also worth it (for all of us) to be sure to let people know ME/CFS affects people of both genders, all ages and all races.