John Augustine Waller

“ Any person, however, that has experienced a paroxysm of Night-Mare, will be disposed rather to give up Dr. Darwin’s hypothesis than to mistrust his own feelings as to the difficulty of breathing, which is far the most terrific and painful of any of the symptoms. The dread of suffocation, arising from the inability of inflating the lungs, is so great, that the person, who for the first time in his life is attacked by this “worst phantom of the night,” generally imagines that he has very narrowly escaped death, and that a few seconds more of the complaint would have inevitably proved fatal. ”

“ I believe every person’s experience coincides in this opinion: hence it arises, that the idea of ghosts and spectres being the idea which inspires us with the greatest terror, is that which most readily and frequently presents itself to the mind, when the nervous system is suddenly agitated during sleep; a state when all objects of fear act with increased force. Whatever may be the cause which induces this kind of shivering during sleep, the shivering itself appears to me evidently to be the immediate cause of the terror, and the accompanying terrific dream ”

“ The sensation is now the most painful that can be conceived; the person becomes every instant more awake and conscious of his situation: he makes violent efforts to move his limbs, especially his arms, with a view of throwing off the incumbent weight, but not a muscle will obey the impulse of the will: he groans aloud, if he has strength to do it, while every effort he makes seems to exhaust the little remaining vigour. ”

“ There are many persons in the world to whom it is no uncommon occurrence, to rise from their bed in the morning more wearied and exhausted, both in mind and body, than when they retired to it the evening before: to whom sleep is frequently an object of terror rather than comfort, and who seek in vain for relief from the means usually recommended by Physicians. ”

“ There must however be some reason for the universal opinion that it always attacks persons lying on the back. I was for a long time of opinion myself, that I was always lying in that position when the paroxysm came on, but as the disease gained strength, and the paroxysms hung more pertinaciously upon me, I became more perfectly awake, so as to be able to discover more accurately the position in which I was lying, and I found that little faith was to be given to the sensations that may occur during Night-Mare, as they are the most deceitful of all evidences. ”

“ In this case the disease is not fully formed, but only threatens an invasion; it proves however that the pre-disposition to it exists, and that the person is in danger of it. But when the paroxysm does actually take place, the uneasiness of the patient in his dream rapidly increases, till it ends in a kind of consciousness that he is in bed, and asleep; but he feels to be oppressed with some weight which confines him [Pg 23] upon his back and prevents his breathing, which is now become extremely laborious, so that the lungs cannot be fully inflated by any effort he can make. ”

“ It is not only in slight cases of Incubus that the patient recovers from the disease without waking, but sometimes I have known it [Pg 87] to happen even in very severe paroxysms, where I have become conscious of the place and situation in which I was, and yet have instantly been asleep on the cessation of the paroxysm. There appears to me a greater difficulty in explaining this mode of the solution of the paroxysm than the other, as there seems no evident cause for the cessation of the paralysis of the Diaphragm, &c. Every thing connected with the phenomena of sleep, is extremely obscure ”

“ This affection may at some time or other occur to any person whatever, as it will for the most part be found to be the constant attendant upon indigestion: [Pg 65] now the most healthy person in the world will sometimes meet with food which his stomach will not digest, and if he goes to sleep whilst such food is remaining in the stomach, or in the superior portion of the alimentary canal, he will certainly be affected with Night-Mare, to a greater or less degree. But a peculiar habit of body is necessary to render a person subject to it, so that it can become habitual. ”

“ In order to reconcile this hypothesis with the real state of things, he is obliged to have recourse to a method not unusual amongst theoretic philosophers, both in medicine and other sciences—that is, when the hypothesis does not exactly apply to the phenomenon to be explained by it, to twist the phenomenon itself into such a shape as will make it fit, rather than give up a favourite hypothesis. ”

“ I have known these dreams to be succeeded by an hysterical affection, of involuntary laughing and crying; and they are, I believe, in all cases attended with a great degree of nervous irritability.
It will sometimes happen in this case, as in the preceding, that the patient does not awake from his dream, notwithstanding that his vociferations have been loud enough to wake all those who may sleep near him. When this happens he seldom or never has any recollection of his terror, and feels greatly surprised when told of the alarm he had given to others. ”

“ The enjoyment of comfortable and undisturbed sleep, is certainly to be ranked amongst the greatest blessings which heaven has bestowed on mankind; and it may be considered as one of the best criterions of a person enjoying perfect health. On the contrary, any disturbance which occurs in the enjoyment of this invaluable blessing, may be considered a decisive proof of some derangement existing in the animal economy, and a consequent deviation from the standard of health. ”

“ Thus then we must give up every explanation of the phenomena which occur in this disease, founded upon principles purely mechanical, however plausible they may appear. Neither is the opinion of Darwin more correct, that the Night-Mare is nothing more than a consciousness of the suspension of the power of volition, and a desire to recover that power. If so, it would differ little from sleep itself; or, however fatiguing it might be to the mind, it could not occasion any derangement in the functions. The breathing and the circulation would go on without any interruption, as in sleep ”

“ Amongst all the subjects of terror which infest the human mind, there is none so powerful as the idea, which is generally imbibed at a very early period of life, respecting ghosts and supernatural appearances; and there are comparatively few persons who, when alone and in the dark, are perfectly free from them. In sleep, however, we are all much more [Pg 62] timid than when awake. ”

“ Those who are habitually subject to the attacks of Night-Mare ought never to sleep alone, but to have always some person near them and within reach, so as to be immediately awoke by their groans or struggles; and the person to whom this office may be entrusted, should be instructed to rouse the patient as early as possible, that the paroxysm may not have time to gain strength; for the frequent repetition of the paroxysms gives greater strength to the disease, and that in proportion to the length of their duration. ”

“ This is not always the case, however, and when it does happen, the dream is rather to be considered as the effect of the terror, than the cause of it. I have frequently found this terror to be connected with some object, not at all in itself terrific; as for instance, a cat or a dog, or sometimes a little child which I had been contemplating in my dream for some time without any dread or terror, has all at once become an object of the utmost horror and alarm, and that without at all changing its appearance or attitude. ”

“ Going to bed before the usual hour is a frequent cause of Night-Mare, as it either occasions the patient to sleep too long, or to lie awake in the night. Passing a whole night, or part of a night, without rest, likewise gives birth to the disease, as it occasions the patient on the succeeding night to sleep too sound. Indulging in sleep too late in the morning is an almost certain method to bring on the paroxysm ”

“ There are many stomachs which convert every thing they receive instantly into an acid, and such will be generally found to be the case with persons subject to habitual Night-Mare, or frightful dreams, and disturbed sleep. Such stomachs too are frequently distended with some acid gas, and I have often found the paroxysm of Night-Mare to be the consequence of this distension alone, and to be immediately removed by any thing which would dispel the gas, such as a glass of peppermint cordial, or gin, or any carminative medicine. ”

“ Of all the modes of solving difficulties, which mankind have ever had recourse to, this is certainly the least philosophical. In the present age however it appears to be considered still more unphilosophical to acknowledge that any phenomenon, however extraordinary, is above our comprehension.
I have been rather prolix on this subject, because I do not remember to have seen any correct account of it in any writer, although the circumstance of seeing spectres during the paroxysm of Incubus is noticed by the most ancient medical writers and others, both Greek and Roman ”

“ Whatever may be the situation of the patient at the moment previous to the invasion of the disease, he is at that moment asleep, although the transition from the waking to the sleeping state may be so rapid as to be imperceptible. I will explain this part of the subject more fully by and by, at present we will assume the fact, and proceed to enumerate the symptoms. If the patient be in a profound sleep, he is generally alarmed with some disagreeable dream; he imagines that he is exposed to some danger, or pursued by some enemy [Pg 22] which he cannot avoid ”

“ In order to render these opinions understood by those who have never read any of the ancient writers of medicine, from a mistaken idea of their not being worth the reading, I must premise, that they considered the nerves to be the conductors of a certain subtile fluid, by means of which the muscles are made to contract, and all the animal functions are performed; this they denominated the animal spirits, and were of opinion that it was secreted from the blood by the brain. ”

“ Its real nature has never been satisfactorily explained, nor has it by any means met with that attention from modern physicians which it merits: indeed it scarcely seems to be considered by them as a disease, or to deserve at all the attention of a physician. Those, however, who labour under this affection to any great degree, can bear testimony to the distress and alarm which it occasions; in many cases rendering the approach of night a cause of terror, and life itself miserable, from the dread of untimely suffocation. ”

“ There are few affections more universally felt by all classes of society, yet it is seldom at present considered of sufficient consequence to require medical advice. To those nevertheless who, from sedentary habits, and depraved digestion, are the most frequent subjects of it, it is a source of great anxiety and misery, breaking in upon their repose, and filling the mind with constant alarms for more serious consequences, “making night [Pg 15] hideous,” and rendering the couch, which is to others the sweet refuge from all the cares of life, to them an object of dread and terror. ”

“ The regimen and treatment I have recommended are directed to the root of the disease, that is, to the hypochondriac or hysteric temperament; for Night-Mare, disturbed sleep, terrific dreams, &c. may be considered only as symptoms of great nervous derangement, or hypochondriasis, and are a sure sign that this disease exists to a great extent. Thus, while the patient [Pg 8] is seeking, by the means recommended, to get rid of his Night-Mare, he will find his general health improving, and the digestive organs recovering their proper tone. ”

“ Hence the appearance of visions, whilst in every respect the patient appears to himself to be perfectly awake. It seems that the brain continues to present a succession of images to the mind as in sleep, whilst at the same time, the body is become susceptible of external impressions, and conscious of internal ones, such as those arising from the derangement which has taken place in the functions of the heart and lungs. ”

“ In children, frightful dreams frequently result from worms, and consequently will be remedied by any kind of treatment which removes the worms themselves, and with them the trash which forms their nest. This trash of itself frequently exists without the worms, and produces all the symptoms which they occasion, and amongst others, Night-Mare and disturbed sleep. ”

“ If a strong propensity to sleep should occur after dinner, it will be certainly better to indulge it a little, as the process of digestion frequently goes on much better asleep than awake. I have always felt at sea an irresistible propensity to sleep after dinner, whenever the dyspeptic symptoms [Pg 110] were considerable, and I never, in any one instance, was attacked with Night-Mare under those circumstances. ”

“ Yet I am aware that in the age in which we live, it is a common practice, not merely to doubt, but to contradict every fact recorded by ancient writers, which, if admitted, would militate against any received theory. ”

“ All unpleasant dreams may be considered as certain modifications of this peculiar affection; such as falling down precipices, or standing on their brink, or being in the midst of a torrent, or in imminent danger of our lives. If these ideas continue long, they generally produce a degree of consciousness that we are asleep, which is succeeded by an attempt to evade the danger by waking ourselves, which constitutes real Night-Mare. ”

“ It frequently happens, especially when a person is anxious about rising at a particular hour, and afraid of over-sleeping it, that he becomes conscious of that circumstance in his sleep, and feels an ardent desire to wake himself; to many persons this is by no means a difficult task, and is soon accomplished; but to those who are subject to Night-Mare, the reverse of this takes place. ”

“ To such persons I dedicate this little work; for their information I have laid down, in as clear terms as the subject will admit, the history of those diseases, which, by depriving us of the benefit of sleep, and [Pg 5] driving rest from our couch, often render life itself miserable, and lay the foundation of formidable, and sometimes of fatal diseases. Amongst those affections which thus break in upon our repose, the most formidable and the most frequent is the disease called Night-Mare ”