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De Clérambault’s syndrome
Published in David Enoch, Basant K. Puri, Hadrian Ball, Uncommon Psychiatric Syndromes, 2020
David Enoch, Basant K. Puri, Hadrian Ball
From its inception, the term “erotomania” suffered from a lack of precise definition. For example, in the eighteenth-century medical lexicon erotomanics were defined as “those who engage in the furious pursuit of vagrant and illicit lust” (Rather, 1965). The terms “nymphomania” or, in the case of men, “satyriasis” more accurately describe these states. Esquirol (1772–1840) made this distinction between erotomania and nymphomania: “In the latter evil originates in the organs of reproduction, the irritation of which reacts upon the brain. In erotomania the sentiment which characterises it is in the head … The subjects of erotomania never pass the limits of propriety, they remain chaste!”
The menopause
Published in Michael J. O’Dowd, The History of Medications for Women, 2020
The Scottish Gentlemen’s tenuous notion of ‘uterine furor’ or ‘uterine fury’ and it’s relationship to menopausal women had it’s origin in Greco-Roman medicine. Soranus of Ephesus of the early second century AD defined uterine fury as satyriasis, a condition of overpowering sexual desire that could occur in men or women (Temkin, 1956).
Naming the Mad Mind
Published in Petteri Pietikainen, Madness, 2015
In the history of classification, a place of honour has been reserved for Carl (von Linné) Linnaeus (1707–78), the Swedish naturalist and the grand classifier of flora and fauna. Linnaeus also placed humans in his system of biological classification, but his name is not usually associated with madness, even though he was one of the first taxonomists or nosologists of mental illness. In the 1740s, he gave lectures on the taxonomy of diseases at the University of Uppsala, and a student attending the lectures carefully wrote down extensive notes that are now stored in the collections of the Swedish Medical Society. These notes reveal that, in addition to somatic diseases, Linnaeus also lectured on mental diseases (morbi mentales). Linnaeus was an empiricist for whom knowledge was only true if it was quantifiable and measurable. Small wonder, then, that he concentrated on external signs and symptoms of diseases in his classification. He divided morbi mentales into three ‘orders’, namely diseases of reason, the imagination and the will. Diseases of reason (morbi judicales) included dementia, which denoted a weakness of mind without accompanying fever, and mania, which denoted fury and delirium (confusion). Diseases of the imagination (morbi imaginarii) included, among other things, disturbances of the senses (such as buzzing in the ears), optical delusions and hypochondriac symptoms, such as heart trouble and stomach pain as well as such emotional maladies as dejection and anxiety. The third order – the diseases of the will (morbi voluntarii) – were comprised of afflictions characterized by diminished capacity or desire. According to Linnaeus, such diseases included ‘love madnesses’ such as female nymphomania and male satyriasis. Common to both of them was the inability to restrain the passion of (sexual) love. Diseases of the will also included morbid longing for home, or nostalgia, immoderate desire to drink (dipsia) and dance (tarantismus) as well as various phobias and feelings of disgust (Uddenberg 2012).
What’s in a Name? A Phenomenological Exploration of Hypersexuality Narratives
Published in International Journal of Sexual Health, 2022
Natasha Knack, Dave Holmes, Chad Hammond, J. Paul Fedoroff
Historically, many different terms and conceptualizations have been used to describe sexual thoughts and behaviors that are excessive, problematic, or difficult to control (for a detailed review, see Briken, 2020; Coleman et al., 2018). Nymphomania, satyriasis, and Don Juanism were once widely used by both the scientific community and the general public (Samenow, 2010a), but have fallen out of common vernacular, partially in response to changing social and political climates. Terms more commonly used today include sexual addiction, sexual compulsivity, and sexual impulsivity (Coleman, 1992; Garcia & Thibaut, 2010; Reid, 2013); while these terms are often used interchangeably, each implies a particular etiology, which in turn suggests a particular treatment approach. The terms hypersexuality and Hypersexual Disorder have also started to gain prominence in recent years (Samenow, 2010a); these terms are controversial, however, as the notion of hypersexuality implies that there is a specific quantity of sexual thoughts, urges, or behavior that is “normal” for all people, at all times. As Joannides (2011) points out, the amount of sexual desire and behavior required to be considered excessive or problematic is incredibly subjective, and varies not only between people, but also over time and in response to different religious, cultural, and political climates. Consequently, the same amount of sexual desire/behavior could be interpreted as either healthy or problematic, depending on the individual and the context in which they find themselves.
The de Clérambault syndrome: more than just a delusional disorder?
Published in International Review of Psychiatry, 2020
Gaia Sampogna, Francesca Zinno, Vincenzo Giallonardo, Mario Luciano, Valeria Del Vecchio, Andrea Fiorillo
The ancient descriptions of erotomania syndrome can be found in the works by Hippocrates, Plutarch, and Galen. In the sixteenth century, the French physician Bartholomy Pardoux (1545–1611) in the book ‘Disease of the Mind’ differentiated between ‘insane love’ (erotomania) and ‘uterine furors’ (nymphomania). In 1623, Jacques Ferrand described clinical cases of patients affected by ‘maladie d’amour’ or ‘melancholie erotique’. In the early eighteenth century, erotomania was described as a general disease caused by unrequited love, while subsequently it was considered an excessive physical love (defined as nymphomania or satyriasis). Esquirol (1838) defined erotomania as a chronic mental disorder (namely ‘monomania’) characterised by an excessive love for an object, either known or imaginary. At that time, erotomania was conceptualised as a form of ‘partial madness’, being a disease of the imagination accompanied by an error of judgement. In 1921, Kraepelin coined the term ‘paranoic megalomania’, emphasising the delusional component of erotomania.
Child Sexual Abuse by Members of the Catholic Church in Italy and France: A Literature Review of the Last Two Decades
Published in Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 2021
A diverse set of works specifically focused on Catholicism complements this overall picture of the history of sexual crimes committed by the clergy. An article by Timothy C. Verhoeven (2012) on the attribution of the satyriasis diagnosis to Catholic priests and religious males provides an analysis of cCSA against the backdrop of medical sciences. It assesses the cultural-historical dimension of cCSA in France by examining the influence of anti-clerical doctors and their stigmatization of celibate on the general public opinion as well as the exploitation of these views in newspapers and polemic pamphlets.