History of Mental Illness and History of Mental Illness and TreatmentTreatment

Ancient TheoriesAncient Theories

• Widespread belief in supernatural and magical forces as cause of mental illness– Exorcism – removal of evil that resides in an

individual, usually by counter-magic or prayer.

• Trephination– Cutting a hole in the skull

to remove pressure– Evidence that people

considered illness organic

Ancient GreeceAncient Greece• Hippocrates

– Looked to the brain as the explanation of our behavior• Egyptians had thought the heart was the core of mental life

– Studied epilepsy, depression, psychosis, irrational fears, and hysteria.

– Therapeutic techniques emphasized:• Rest, bathing, dieting

– Hippocratic Oath – taken by doctors

when they graduate from medical

school

Middle Ages Middle Ages Renaissance Renaissance• During a time dominated by the Catholic Church,

superstitious beliefs in devils and demons were very strong.– At the same time, Church charities often provided

care for the mentally ill.

• Idiot – inborn illness

• Lunatic – mental disabilities

not from birth

Enlightenment (Age of Reason)Enlightenment (Age of Reason)• Reason and the scientific method finally

replaced superstition as primary way of understanding the world.– Anton Mesmer

• invention of hypnosis

Late 1700s – 1800sLate 1700s – 1800s• While research and treatment continued, society

placed an emphasis on removal of the mentally ill, which gave rise to insane asylums.

• Bedlam Hospital – after an investigation into the “madhouses of England,” Bedlam became the prototype of the injustices

of mental hospitals.

RestraintsRestraints• “Straight Jacket”

RestraintsRestraints

Emerging TreatmentsEmerging Treatments

• Rocking Chair Therapy

Reform MovementReform Movement• Philippe Pinel – Moral Treatment

– Kind treatment– -minimum or restraint

• Benjamin Rush– Signer of the Declaration of Independence– Father of American Psychiatry

• Dorothea Dix– Civil War nurse, campaigned

against poor treatment of the mentally ill, especially restraints.