What are these?
Nervous diseases are more difficulty to
diagnose than diseases of the various organs of the body because the
nervous system is hidden from the eye of the physician and it can be
known only from the disturbances of the organs governed by the affected
nerves whether and of what type the nervous diseases is. Under this
head come apoplexy, forgetfulness, hysteria, mental defectiveness,
mental illness, neurasthenia and others. The most common nervous
weakness, nervous break down or nervous exhaustion.
Causes:
Many
factors contribute to the production of nervous diseases. Some people
are born with a nervous disposition and it is that category which
generally suffers from headaches, neuralgia, hysterical manifestations
and bizarre forms of mental activity. The nervous system is exposed to
the fast pace of modern life, which tends to bring on many diseases like
anxiety states, digestives disturbances and exhaustion. Shocks to both
mind and body, such as the loss of a dear one, money reverses, an
unfortunate love affair and an accident may be the starting point of
many chronic nervous complaints. Certain organic poisons like the one
produced in body by diseases like syphilis give rise to serious nervous
disorders. Chronic alcoholism may bring on severe mental derangement.
The organic disorders manifest themselves in the shape by hysteria,
anxiety states and nervous breakdowns.
Weakness of the nervous
system can give rise to diseases like dyspepsia or palpitation, which
cannot be helped by remedies directed towards those organs. It is but
natural since it is the brain and the nervous system enclosed in it,
which controls the bodily functions. A sudden loosening of bowels or the
bladder in case of fright is an example. Another example is of certain
persons with a strong will power who are able to fight serious crisis
brought on by diseases much better than ordinary individuals.
Symptoms:
A
person suffering from nervous weakness or debility generally
experiences a sense of nameless fear, agitation, perplexity, confusion,
worry, disappointment, loneliness, irritability and insomnia. The
physical symptoms are constipation, dyspepsia, headaches, vague aches
and pains all over the body and feverishness. The patient is also
inclined to be a hypochondriac. The moment he reads about or hears the
symptoms of a disease he imagines that he suffers from it. The wise
physician will keep him away from any medical literature.
The main
cause of a nervous breakdown is the rat race in which modern man
engages. The lust for money and success-which again is measured in the
good things of life, -motivates a man to overwork, both mentally and
physically. Constant worry about things being done and to be done lead
to tension and a man falls prey to his imagination. Overstraining leads
to mistakes which erodes his self-confidence and after that the only way
is the way downhill.
Treatment:
Since a healthy
mind can reside only in a healthy body, see that the body regains its
health. The paint must live a normal, natural life. He should try to get
sleep. During the day also he should be advised to relax in a bed for
some hours. The loosening of tensions by relaxation will help his organs
to do their work properly and he would be able to get rid of the
poisons.
The next imperative for such a patient is exercise. He
should take walks and if possible take a jogging. His foods should
include bread made from wheat from which bran has not been sieved out,
fruits and boiled vegetables. Since nervous debility shows a marked lack
of vitamin B, the deficiency should be made up by inclusion in his diet
of foods, which contain it in larger measure. Unpolished rice, milk,
cucumber, mangoes, pears, pineapples, guava, tomatoes, raisins and leafy
vegetables should be his mainstay. He should be asked to eat his food
in a relaxed manner, chewing it properly before ingestion.
Massages
can help in reactivating the nervous system. Hydropathic treatment is
also recommended and that merely consists in bathing his spine with a
garden or bathroom shower for a couple of minutes. The water should be
cold. During summer cold showering of the spine could be done three
times or more and in winter twice would do.
The patient must be
told to exercise his willpower to get rid of the disease. He must be
told that he is getting better. Psychological impressions must be
created on his mind, which will help to understand that his disease is
not incurable. Suggestion is the best thing in such circumstances. It
has to be remembered that certain nervous diseases like hysteria are the
result of autosuggestion and nothing else.
Persons suffering from
nervous debility are always on the look out for crutches on which they
can lean or shoulders on which they can weep. The wise physician tries
to reawaken their self-confidence and the desire to stand on their own
feet.
Exercises:
Some exercises are helpful in dealing with nervous debility.
Sit
on your feet with your stomach touching your knees. Try to keep your
spine straight and extend both your arms. Now thrust your right foot
forward and stand up with a jerk. Resume your earlier position and
repeat the exercise with your left foot.
Stand with your right leg
about a foot from your left. Join your hands and extend the arms
downward, upward and then backward. More the arms with the hands joined
in a circular motion and inhale and exhale deeply during the movement.
Lie
on your back on the floor with your elbows touching your sides. Then
try to raise the body with your elbows and heels and then resume the
former position.
Stand like a boxer and make positions like you
are hitting somebody with your fists. Or, to put it differently, indulge
in shadow boxing for some time, moving your feet as a boxer does.
Stand
in the normal position and then sit down with a jerk on your toes, with
your palms touching the ground. Suddenly jerk your legs back just as
you were about to do push-up. The exercise is akin to doing sit-ups and
push-ups simultaneously.
If this regimen is followed for some
weeks, you can get rid of any nervous disorder. It is also beneficial
for sciatica, hydrosel and dropsy.
