Ebenezer Maurice (2486)

Admission Details for Patient: Ebenezer Maurice (2486)

Gender: Male Age: 25
Marital Status: Single Religion: Calvinist Methodist
Occupation: Schoolmaster
Address: Festiniog, Merioneth

Date of Admission: August 24, 1875
Date of Discharge: April 21, 1876
Discharge Category: Recovered

Disease: Acute mania
Supposed Cause: Overstudy and anxiety

Medical Certificate:
He seems very excited and wanders in his talk and prays and preaches and fancies that he is surrounded by evil spirits and would get out of bed if he was not held down by his attendant. Fancies that he is away at Carnarvon. He screams all day and cannot be calmed. Evan Roberts his attendant states that he cannot complete anything he intends to do and Catherine Davies states that he (Ebenezer Maurice) could not finish a letter after beginning it but when well could write a letter quickly. Catherine Davies could not get Ebenezer Maurice to give his father's name. Hugh James Lloyd, Barmouth.

Approximate duration of present attack: 6 days

Number of Previous Attacks: 0

Number of Previous Admissions: 0

Number of Subsequent Admissions: 0

Total Number of Admissions: 1

Relatives affected:

Epileptic: No

Suicidal: Not probable

Dangerous: Yes trying to strike all about him

Clean Habit:

Food Refusal: Yes

Sleep Habit: Bad

Destructive Habit: Yes, tearing the curtains

Disposition: Sober, industrious and extremely respectable

Education: Good

Physical/Mental State at Examination: Feeble bodily condition. Would not eat at first but soon took nourishment freely. Heart sounds normal. Tubercular deposit in the apices of both lungs. He had been preparing for some time for an examination which he had previously failed to pass. Not being a certificated master he could not retain his present appointment unless he succeeded. This preyed very much upon his mind and is the supposed cause of the attack. He is highly respected in the locality where he resides and there was a project afoot of presenting him with a testimonial - particularly among the Good Templars to which order he belongs.* He was addressing a meeting of them when his disorder was first observed. On admission he was extremely excited tossing his arms about. Continually repeating certain letters of the alphabet and then mentioning a person's name. Using religious expressions and then immediately wandering into some other subject. Utterly incoherent. He is a short slender and very delicate looking young man with a sallow complexion. Pupils dilated and very slightly unequal. Hazel irides. Placed in padded room where he was very violent hitting everybody he could reach. He was given Choral Hyd.

Current Diagnosis: Mixed Dissociative Disorder (F44.7)

Case Notes

1875 Aug 25 - Slept well all night but this morning is very excited and violent. Ordered bread and milk for breakfast and supper and beef tea for dinner.

Takes his food fairly.

Rep. Chloral H.S.

Aug 26 - Excited and completely incoherent - every kind of idea mixed unmeaningfully together.

Takes nourishment freely.

Sleeps well after each dose of the Chloral.

Aug 27 - Quieter though incoherent with complete loss of identity.

Was allowed to get up this morning and walked about the yard with one of the warders.

He reels in walking as if he was drunk. When left in the day room he undressed himself quite naked and was then put to bed again.

Aug 28 - Quieter but cannot sleep without Chloral.

Eats well, seems gradually to be coming to himself, ordered a chop for dinner.

Aug 29 - Is very much improved today. Towards evening he brightened up for a few hours and was able to appreciate his condition.

Said that if he had been properly taken care of at home he need not have been brought here.

He has plenty of nourishment here, he says, which has brought him round whereas he was almost starved before coming.

He soon relapsed again. Rep. Haust.

Aug 30 - Slept fairly last night. Completely incoherent this morning.

Eats well.

Sept 6 - Has improved very much - quite sensible and coherent and has written several sensible letters. Is anxious about his examination.

Sleeps well at night.

Continue chop.

Sept 13 - After an improvement which lasted nearly a week he has relapsed to his original condition and is again furiously maniacal, shouting, preaching, singing etc.

Ordered Chloral Hydrat. in frequent doses to allay excitement.

Beef tea and bread and milk instead of chop.

Sept 17 - Still incoherent but coming round.

Much quieter.

Chloral at bedtime.

Oct 30 - Had been quiet since last report and melancholy.

Now he is silent but not as depressed.

1876 Jan 13 - His condition is very variable. A short time ago he was very dirty in his habits and tore his clothes but now takes a pride in his personal appearance, is quiet but cheerful and intelligent.

Jan 29 - Improving and is cheerful.

Apr 7 - Has remained well and without any relapse for two months - he is intelligent and rational writing capital letters home.

He will probably be discharged tomorrow fortnight.

Apr 19 - Has continued well since last report. For the last week he has been at work in the office and has been a material assistance as his work can be depended on for corrections.

To go before the committee tomorrow.

Apr 21 - Discharged recovered.

Medications/Treatments: Padded room, Chloral

Additional Notes

*

The Good Templars was an international organisation for teetotallers which started in New York in 1851 and moved over to Britain around 1868.

The organisation was modelled on Freemasonry adopting many of the rituals and regalia.