From Paralysis to Fatigue: A History of Psychosomatic Illness in the Modern Era

This book is one of those hidden jewels: a masterful study of how powerful and pervasive psychosomatic illness has been (and likely continues to be) in human culture, accomplished via historical observation. The text is fascinating and enjoyable. After reading this, you may find yourself asking some interesting questions about many prevalent health issues that exist today, such as chronic back pain, GI problems, headaches, chronic fatigue, etc. How much of human suffering has hidden psychogenic roots, and how paradigms within medical science might be reinforcing them, are critical issues that deserve much greater attention. This important book convincingly illuminates how powerful and pervasive such phenomena can be. Really an eye-opener.

This is a very well researched book which is also very easy and pleasant to read. The author has scoured libraries for contemporary accounts of psychosomatic illness, mostly from physicians but sometimes from patients as well. Shorter describes the history of psychosomatic illness from the first written accounts up to the present day. In doing so he shows how theories have changed over the centuries, and also how the symptoms themselves have changed as patients unconsciously "choose" which symptoms will be believed (although I have my doubts about whether or not this is actually the case). The book contains many accounts of psychosomatic illness, some of which are quite entertaining (although probably not for the patients themselves). My only criticism of the book is the lack of science. Shorter doesn't try to give any theories about the nature of psychosomatic illness and seems to think that all psychosomatic symptoms are simply generated by the unconscious mind, which can change them at will. This seems to go against known physiology, which shows that certain psychosomatic reactions (such as the defecation response to fear) are hard-wired into the nervous system and happen in animals as well as humans. Perhaps there are different types of psychosomatic illness with different causes and different physiology, but Shorter doesn't address this. While this isn't a major shortcoming for a book that only professes to discuss the history of psychosomatic illness, Shorter does give the impression of having a mildly negative opinion of the "somatizers" he describes. Overall, however, it is a very good read and I couldn't put it down. For anyone at all interested in psychosomatic illness this book is a must-have.