Culturally bound syndromes are forms of insanity that are confined to a few specific cultures. They can generally be identified as a more familiar form of mental disorder expressed in a culturally defined way. Amok- Most common in the Southeast Asia, Malaysia, the Phillipines, and Polynesia, but found worldwide- This is almost always found only in men. After experiencing a loss of social status, the individual becomes withdrawn and brooding before bursting out in a violent, homicidal episode (“running amok”), killing anyone and everything in their path. After these violent outbursts, the individual typically does not remember them.
In Western countries, a phenomenon known as “suicide by cop” is believed to be a variation of amok. This is where am unarmed individual assaults an armed police officer with the intent of provoking a lethal response.
Anorexia nervosa- Western Europe and US- this is an excessive fear of becoming fat combined with a distorted body image. The individual will starve herself, convinced she is getting fat, even if she is obviously suffering from malnutrition. This is most common in young women, but can strike men as well.
Ashanti Psychosis- Western Africa (Ghana)- The individual believes they are being punished for something. This belief often manifests after illness or difficult child birth. Alternately, the individual may believe that she is a witch and has been unconsciously injuring people. The individual becomes paranoid and then hyperactive. The individual may sing, dance, rip their own clothes off, and consume inedible substances.
Amafufunyana- Southern Africa, typically in the Zulu and Xhosa cultures- The individual is convinced they have become possessed by evil spirits, typically sent by a sorcerer. The individual hear the spirit talking from his stomach, in a language he doesn’t speak. The voice may initially sound far away, but slowly grow closer and closer. The individual may also speak in a voice other than their own, claiming it is the spirit talking through him. ‘Amafufunyana’ is also the name of the spirits thought to cause this condition.
Ataque de Nervios –Carribbean, Puerto Rico, Latin America, Mediterranean – After some sort of family strife, the individual has fits of uncontrolled shouting, crying, trembling, and seizures. The individual often feels as if he has left his body and may foam at the mouth. The individual typically does not remember what happened during the outburst. This is somewhat similar to Susto.
This is sometimes derisively referred to as “Puerto Rican syndrome”, “hysterical Mexican syndrome”, or other variations tied to a specific ethnicity.
Brain Fag- West Africa -This is triggered by an intense period of study and thus most often found in students. The individual has difficulty concentrating and remembering. He has trouble sleeping, may experience trembling, and is depressed. He may experience the feeling that something is pressing down on his head or neck and that his something is crawling beneath his skin. Some the symptoms of brain fag may be attributed to witchcraft.
Also called Studiation Madness in Trinidad
Dhat- India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka- Severe anxiety and guilt related to the loss of semen. This may occur due to sexual contact or simply as a perceived loss due to nocturnal emissions or in the urine. This is seen a life threatening loss as semen is considered a particularly concentrated form of other bodily fluids. Forty drops of blood go into making a drop of bone marrow and forty drops of blood go into making a drop of semen. Thus replacing this vital fluid can drain the body of blood and life.
This is more rarely seen in women as a loss of vaginal fluid.
Falling Out- Southeastern US, most common in African Americans and Afro-Carribeans with highest incidence in Florida. After experiencing stress or trauma, the individual actually collapses. The individual is conscious and can understand people speaking around him, but cannot move. The individual may also experience temporary blindness. This may be attributed to the individual becoming possessed by spirits or dead relatives. The individual may also speak in tongues.
Ghost Sickness- Native American tribes, best documented in the Navajo- The individual becomes preoccupied with death and dying, particularly the possibility of death by witchcraft. The individual typically suffers from nightmares and feelings that they are being suffocated. Typically this is set off by seeing a ghost, or evidence of ghostly presence, particularly after someone has died.
Gururumba (wild man episode)- New Guinea- This is typically confined to married men He begins stealing very minor items from neighbors. He typically seems poorly coordinated and suffers from random outbursts. The individual then retreats into the forest with the stolen items. Some time later he returns from the forest with no knowledge of having stolen anything. This state is sometimes called ‘being a wild pig’ due to the similarities in behavior. This is also known as guria, longlong, or lulu. (New Guinea has 800 different languages, so dozens if not hundreds of words exist for this condition)
Hikikomori- Japan- The individual withdraws from all social interaction and isolates himself in a single room in their parents home for six months or more at a time. This typically occurs some time during adolescence or early adulthood, starting with a refusal to go to school. The individual typically locks himself in his room and engages in activities that don’t require interacting with others such as reading, watching TV, surfing the internet, or playing video games, or simply just staring into space. This extreme isolation leads to a breakdown in social skills and social mores. Attempts to end the individuals isolation may result in him lashing out at family members or pounding on the walls while the rest of the family tries to sleep. The Japanese Ministry of Health estimates there are 50, 000 hikikomori in Japan today. The majority of sufferers are male.
Hwa-Byung (Fire illness or wool-hwa-byung)–Korea- This is more commonly found in older women. This is believed to be caused by emotional imbalances, specifically a build up of anger. After some kind of stress in relationship, the individual experiences pain, panic, blurred vision, and hot and cold flashes. The individual becomes intolerant of heat. She may also become convinced there is some sort of harmful growth inside her, due to a feeling of pressure building up inside. Typically the individual cries easily.
Koro- Southeast Asian cultures. This is an irrational fear that the sexual organs will be absorbed into the body. The individual fears losing their masculinity or feminity. It is typically triggered by some sort of sexual contact the individual considers inappropriate (such as sex with a prostitute, ‘kinky’ sex, etc) or eating some kind of tainted food that has corrupted the body. The individual may use hooks or clamps or ask someone else to try to pull the affected parts outward to keep them from being sucked into the body.
Latah- Malaysia and Indonesia- Typically found only in women. When startled, the woman has a hysterical outburst with crying, screaming, jumping up and exaggerated arm gestures. She will also mimic those around her and will easily obey any command given to her. Cruel relatives may purposely starte the sufferer to enjoy the entertaining effects. A varient of this is found in Maine (US) and is known as ‘jumping’. It is also known as Amurakh, irkunii, olan, myriachit or menkeiti (Siberia), Bah tschi, bah-tsi or baah-ji (Thailand), Imu (Ainu, Sakhalin, Japan), Mali-mali or Silok (Phillipines)
P’a leng (wind illness)- China, Southeast Asia- The individual is afraid of the cold, specifically the wind, fearing it will steal their yang energy and kill them. The individual goes out of his way to stay warm. The individual will huddle under blankets, consume food thought to boost yang energy, and try to stay out of the wind. Khyol is a similar illness in Thailand, but it thought to result from an imbalance of four elements
Penis theft- Nigeria, Benin, Ghana, China- This has some points in common with koro, but this is attributed to an outside source. African groups typically blame the theft on being touched by an evil sorceror. Chinese sufferers blame fox spirits (Hu Li Jung) The penis is believed to have been stolen and replaced with another penis that either belongs to someone else, if inferior to the original one, or is fact a ‘ghost’ penis.
Qi-gong Psychotic Reaction- China- After intense study of Qi-gong, the individual experiences an imbalance of qi (or chi). The individual reports feeling the movement of qi through the body in an erratic pattern. This results in visual and auditory hallucinations, rapidly shifting moods, and strange sensations. Tai Chi is a form of Qi-gong and is the best known in the West. There are over 2200 versions of Qi-gong and virtually any type of intense meditation or martial arts practice could serve as a trigger.
Shen Kui- China- This is loss of yang associated with the loss of semen. It is typically believed loss through excessive sexual activity or ‘improper’ sexual activity. This is not necessarily an actual loss, the individual may simply be convinced that they have lost too much. The individual suffers from symptoms associated with yang loss such as nightmares, weakness, dizziness, disorientation, and sexual malfunction.
Suo Yang- China- like koro, but confined to men. In China it is seen as a symptom of a potentially deadly yang deficiency.
Susto- Latinos in the US, Mexico, Central & South America- A traumatic event convince the individual their soul has left their body and they will sicken and die. Witnessing something considered to be ‘supernatural’ (such as seeing a ghost) may trigger an episode of susto. While the soul is separated from the body, the individual is listless, nervous, and may suffer from involuntary muscle tics. Typically a traditional healer will be called in to try to reunite the soul with body, which may take many attempts. This ceremony is known as limpia or barrida. This shares some similarities with Ataque de Nervios.
Taijin kyofusho –Japan- This is a phobia of causing discomfort to other through ones own social ineptitude. The fear is typically that the individual will seriously offend or harm others. The individual obsesses over social interactions and examines and re-examines them to make sure they have not caused others harm. Typical variants on this focus on a fear of blushing, fear of having a deformed body, fear of making eye contact, and fear of body odor. All of these variants are based on the fear these things will cause other to be offended or harmed somehow.
Windigo psychosis- found in Native American tribes around the Great Lakes, such as the Ojibaw, Chippewa, and Cree. The individual becomes convinced that he will become a windigo, a terrible cannibalistic monster. The individual fears becoming a cannibal, yet also increasingly see people as food. In addition, the individual may experience nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. This derangement is most active during winter due to the scarcity of food.
Zar – Middle East, North Africa, East Africa, Iran- The person is convinced they are possessed by a spirit, but does not consider it harmful. The individual may develop a long term relationship with the spirit. The individual may shout, crying, laugh, or bang their head on items at inappropriate times.
Other terms for this are hsieh-ping (Taiwan) shin-byung (Korea) and “spells” (Southern US). These variation typically involve possession by a specific deceased relative.
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Historical Disorders
Many culture bound syndromes eventually cease to exist as the culture that produced them has vanished. Some simply change their form or become very uncommon.
anorexia mirabilis “holy anorexia”- medieval Europe- Starving oneself as a form of religious devotion. While carried out to the extreme point where it may cause severe harm, it was not necessarily seen as a psychosis. Anorexia is a modern term and will not be used in texts from the medieval period.
Choreomania- 13th-16th century Europe, chiefly Germany, Holland, and Italy- the spontaneous need to dance along with a morbid love a music. Suffers will dance themselves into a state of exhaustion, or even to death.
Dromomania (travelling fugue)- France, most cases reported in 19th century- The individual spontaneously drops their entire life and travels a long distance to set up a new life with a new name and occupation. Some time later, they will drop out of this state and then have no knowledge of what they have been doing.
Modern versions of dromomania typically just involve a compulsive need to travel, without the amnesia.
Jerusalem Syndrome- Jerusalem – Upon visiting the city, the individual is taken with religious fervor, even if he was not previously all that religious. The individual becomes obsessed with ritual cleanliness and will obsessively wash. This eventually culminates in the individual making a white toga-like garment and marching from wherever they were to a significant site in Jersualem while singing psalms, quoting random sections of the Bible, or just shouting. Once there, the individual delivers a sermon calling for all mankind to adopt a more wholesome, simple way of life. Incidents of religious fervor may also result in the individual determining they need to visit Jerusalem so they can deliver such a sermon.
Variations on this are also found in Rome and Mecca. Incidents of Jerusalem syndrome date back to the Middle Ages.
pibloktoq (Arctic hysteria)- most cases reported by 19th century explorer- typical found among the Inuit- After losing (or symbolically losing) something significant in his life, the individual has a hysterical outburst of screaming and crying. The affected individual may also tear off their clothes and hair and show no signs of feeling cold (which is notable considering the subzero temperatures in the actic).
Semen Loss Anxiety- Victorian Europe and America- similar to Eastern semen loss anxieties such as Dhat and Shen Kui. This was common among Victorian men that believed this could lead to an imbalance of bodily humors. Circumcision was often used as a treatment for this in the belief it would lower the chances of night emissions. Lord Baden-Powell was famous proponent of the theory that semen loss could lead to physical weakness in young men. He is best known as the founder of the Boy Scouts.
Sleep paralysis- the individual experiences extended paralysis upon waking or just before going to sleep. The individual experiences dream-like hallucinations, but is convinced they are awake and they are really happening. In past centuries, this was freuqently called “old hag” as they were convinced witches or demons came and sat on their chest while they slept and they would see and hear the ‘old hag’ coming and going. Alien abduction may be a new form of ‘old hag’.
Stendahl Syndrome- Named for the French author Stendahl. Upon being exposed to large amounts of artwork or truly inspiring artwork, the individual becomes disoriented and hallucinates. This can also be triggered by an overwhelming number of choices such as when shopping. It is best known in Florence, Italy where the hospitals treat at least a few cases a month.
Epidemic insanities
Many culture bound syndromes can also occur as spontaneous epidemics, with whole segments of a population simultaneously succumbing to madness. The following culture bound syndromes are also reported to frequently occur as epidemics.
+Virtually all semen loss sydromes such as koro, dhat, and Shen Kui.
+most sydromes related to witchcraft can become epidemics
+Amafufunyana
+choreomania
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Contributor's Note
Based on research done for my degree in Anthropology.
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