A Case of HysteriaMain MenuThe Altogether Shocking History of Women’s Mental HealthThe Anatomy of InsanityThe Wandering WombTheater Of The HystericsFather Freud Knows BestThis Place Will Make You CrazyThe Water CureThis Lobotomy Won't Hurt A BitShe Must Be MadShock The Pain AwayJust A Touch Of ElectricityA Home For Inebriates And The InsaneThe Inmates Aren't Running The AsylumStories From The SanatoriumAgnes RichardsThe Ladies of RockhavenBaby BluesMaybe She's Born With ItStay Subservient!The Cost of Going Crazy in CaliforniaTill Commitment Do We PartAdditional Artifacts from Patton State Hospital, ca. 1930-1950Anne-Marie Maxwell
Hysterical Paroxysm
1media/Header Image - Hysterical Paroxysm.jpg2020-03-27T15:00:51-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b4793698010image_header2020-04-22T14:56:18-07:00Curtis Fletcher3225f3b99ebb95ebd811595627293f68f680673eFrom ancient times to the mid-twentieth century, male medical practitioners routinely misdiag-nosed women as suffering from the catchall ailment of hysteria—the treatment for which could involve manually massaging the genitalia of female patients to the point of “hysterical parox-ysm.” As the work was fatiguing and slow, a variety of mechanical instruments were invented in the late nineteenth century to assist doctors in their work. These precursors to modern-day vibrators included saddles that mimicked the riding of a horse, electric belts, and the portable devices seen here, such as the Niagara No. 1 Massager and 1940s-era Vibra Finger Gum Massager, manufactured in Los Angeles by Atlas Industries. Widespread, yet discreet advertis-ing in needlework, household, and agricultural magazines, as well as door-to-door sales, led consumers to adopt these appliances quickly.
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1media/Hysteria_Intro panel_Final Art.jpgmedia/Hscan.jpg2020-03-26T15:03:06-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479The Altogether Shocking History of Women’s Mental HealthTyson Gaskill67image_header9823052020-04-27T09:11:49-07:00Tyson Gaskill93cb401bee8f73160b4c4378060de7643c42eee9
1media/Electrpathic Belt_thumb.jpg2020-04-03T14:50:58-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479Advertisement for Electropathic Belt, ca. early 1900s1media/Electrpathic Belt.jpgplain2020-04-03T14:50:58-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479
1media/Vigor _ Co AD for Vibration 2_thumb.jpg2020-04-03T14:50:19-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479Advertisement for Vigot’s Horse-Action Saddles, ca. early 1900s1media/Vigor _ Co AD for Vibration 2.jpgplain2020-04-03T14:50:19-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479
12020-04-16T14:49:31-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479Niagara No. 1 Massager, ca. 19541gallery2020-04-16T14:49:31-07:00Anne-Marie Maxwell326ac6eff123bb3f77fb517c66299be8b435b479