The state of lethargy has been shrouded in a halo of mysticism, mystery and horror for centuries. The fear of falling asleep in a lethargic sleep and being buried alive was so widespread that in the last century in Germany, for example, at all large cemeteries, “preliminary” tombs were arranged.
However, in the oldest Munich burial vault, not a single case of the revival of the deceased was recorded.
Does lethargy really imitate true death so skillfully that one can be confused with the other? At the beginning of the 20th century, there was no consensus among the most prominent scientists on this issue. Modern science categorically answers: no!
Outwardly, the state of lethargy is more like a deep sleep. But it is practically impossible to wake the "sleeping" person, he does not react to calls, touches, and other external stimuli. However, breathing is clearly visible. If you look closely, you can see the twitching of the eyelids. The pulse is easily felt - even, rhythmic, sometimes a little slow. Blood pressure is normal or slightly lowered. Skin color is normal, unchanged.
Only in very rare cases is there really a picture of an imaginary death. Blood pressure drops sharply, the pulse is barely detected, breathing becomes shallow, the skin is cold and pale.
But even with the deepest lethargy, a doctor today can detect signs of life in a patient. Heart sounds are heard, muscles and nerves contract in response to irritation with electric current; the reaction of dilated pupils to pain persists. Electrocardiograms and electroencephalograms record the biocurrents of the heart and brain.
So, at the present time, the question does not stand in the plane of differentiating between lethargic sleep and death. And the term "lethargic sleep" itself is practically not used by specialists. Today they talk about hysterical sleep, hysterical lethargy. For this condition is a manifestation of painful neurotic reactions. It develops, as a rule, in people suffering from hysteria - one of the forms of neurosis.
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At its core, hysterical lethargy has nothing to do with physiological sleep. First of all, normal sleep cannot continue continuously for a day or more (except for those cases when a person is very overworked, did not sleep for several days, etc.). And an attack of hysterical lethargy lasts from several hours to many days and even - in very rare cases! - years old. It is interesting that during the attack the patient really sleeps for some time; this phenomenon was called "sleep within sleep." It was possible to identify it using an electroencephalogram.
If we compare the electroencephalogram, on which the biocurrents of the brain of a sleeping person are registered, with the electroencephalogram of a person who has fallen into a lethargic sleep, then even a non-specialist can catch their sharp difference. As you know, physiological sleep is divided into two phases. The first is the so-called slow wave sleep, with characteristic slow electrical biopotentials. The second phase is rapid sleep, or paradoxical; it is characterized by fast fluctuations of biopotentials with a small amplitude.
During hysterical lethargy, the electroencephalogram registers a picture of the brain biocurrents, corresponding to the state of wakefulness! With various stimuli: noise, hail, flashes of light - the electroencephalogram shows that the brain reacts to them. But outwardly, this does not manifest itself in any way, the patient does not "wake up". As already mentioned, it is almost impossible to get him out of the state of lethargy. Awakening is as sudden and unexpected as the onset of an attack.
True, in some cases, hysterical lethargy is preceded by a headache, lethargy, a feeling of weakness. And a person who has repeatedly fallen into lethargy (and this is often observed in clinical practice), based on familiar symptoms, can predict the approach of another attack.
Entering, as experts say, into a state of lethargy is also accompanied by a significant activation of the autonomic nervous system: the body temperature rises, the pulse quickens, blood pressure rises, and sweating increases. Physiological characteristics are such as if the person is doing hard physical work. This is explained by the fact that the development of hysterical lethargy is always associated with strong emotional stress.
As a rule, the attack is preceded by a nervous shock.
The mental trauma that caused it can be extremely severe and not significant at all. For in people suffering from hysteria, even minor everyday troubles cause an inadequate, too strong response.
Thus, that is, through a pathological sleep, they "turn off", move away from an insoluble life situation for them.
Here is how one patient describes her condition during seizures: “I forget all bad things and feel good. During sleep, my mother comes to me, hugs, kisses me, says that she will help me. " "Leaving" from a difficult problem occurs, of course, spontaneously, without active conscious participation of the patient.
Hysterical lethargy is one of the most pronounced and rather rare manifestations of hysterical neurosis; suffer from it, as a rule, women, more often of a young age.
During an attack, first of all, careful monitoring of the patient's blood pressure indicators, his pulse and respiration is carried out. When the "sleep" lasts a long time - several days - the patient has to be fed (if the ability to swallow food remains) or nutrients are injected with the help of droppers. If necessary, measures are taken to empty the bladder and bowels.
In order to save the patient from this extremely rare form of manifestation of hysterical neurosis, the underlying disease is treated.
Hysterical lethargy is not life-threatening. And lethargic sleep in those dramatic forms in which "eyewitnesses" write and tell about it is a state more mythical than real. The true mysteries of lethargy are much more complex and interesting than the fictional ones. So far, it has not been possible to fully reveal the subtle details of this pathological mechanism.
True or not, a few surviving stories of lethargic dreams will be given below.
Nadezhda Lebedin was 35 years old when she suddenly fell asleep at work. It happened in 1953 in Dnepropetrovsk. And I woke up only 20 years later and said: “That year I was always falling asleep. Whether at work, at home, or in the movies, I wanted to sleep. I used to come home and I couldn't even get to bed: I would sit on the floor, lean my head against the bed and fall asleep. Once I soaked the linen for washing, but I feel I can't do it. Then my husband came, and I told him: I am dying! I don't remember anything else."
For five years the woman slept in the clinic, then her mother took her to her. The daughter heard and understood what her relatives were talking about, but she could not answer. I made only weak movements with my arm or leg.
In the summer of 1973, her mother died. Then they carried her in their arms to the coffin and said: "Goodbye, Nadia, to my mother!" After these words, Nadia screamed. A strong shock brought the person back to life.
Linggard, a Norwegian woman, fell asleep in 1919. All the doctors' efforts to wake her up were in vain. She slept until 1941. When the woman opened her eyes, an adult daughter and a very old husband were sitting at her bedside, and she looked the same as she did 22 years ago.
It seemed to her that only one night of sleep had passed. The woman immediately began to talk about yesterday's affairs, about the need to feed the baby as soon as possible.
A year later, she grew older by all two decades.
And here is a very rare case of lethargy. It was reported a few years ago by the English magazine The Weekend. An eleven-year-old Yugoslav girl, Nizreta Makhovich, came home from school when her grandmother told her: "Your brother was born." In response, Nizreta shouted, “I don't need any brother! I hate him!" She rushed to her room, fell on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.
When her father came home, he tried to wake her up, but could not. They called a doctor. He said that there were no violations in the child's physical condition. And Nizreta continued to sleep. Her strength was supported by glucose infusions.
The girl was transported to Skopel. Physicians and psychiatrists from different countries were invited. The doctors tried to wake up Nizreta with questions, rocked her in their arms, just persuaded to wake up - all in vain. The "sleeping beauty" eyelids twitched slightly, she sighed and continued to sleep.
Nizreta woke up by herself, on the 25th day. She immediately asked: “Where am I? Why did you end up in this bed? Where is my mom? By an amazing coincidence, her little brother died at the same hour at home.
