Call for Submissions: Made-Up Maladies and Imaginary Illnesses

by Matt B. on July 12, 2011

My friend Sara and I were sharing notes this morning on all of the illnesses we’ve invented and imagined for ourselves. And it occurred: why not create a made-up medical dictionary for this kind of thing, a DSM-IV / Future Dictionary of America of all the maladies that people have concocted, diagnosed themselves with, and bravely battled to overcome?

So here it is – our call for submissions.  Send us what you’ve got, in as much detail as you care to share.  We’ll start collating and indexing and cross-referencing, and we’ll keep you posted as we assemble the first of what will no doubt be many volumes.

If you care to send stuff private-wise, you can hit me at PBieber AT mail.harvard.edu

 

 

  • Lian

    My eyes hurt and I get a bit nervous when I see certain sharp, unpredictable things, like loose, curled pieces of sheet metal.  Or metal coat hangers, which tend to get tangled and might hit your eye when you untangle them.  I have weak eyes in general, so I think I’m overly protective of them in some ways.  It’s not rational: sometimes the corner of a table will give me heebie jeebies, but on the other hand, I’m not particularly nervous about needles, or broken glass, if it’s not moving and on the ground.  (Just googled it: aichmophobia!?!)

    Related to this, although it’s less obviously imaginary, is that sometimes my mind is alert (or racing) but my eyes get tired or sore, or it’s painful or anxiety-producing to look at things.  So I can’t do much, even though I’m wide awake.  I usually just sit it out in the dark, or close my eyes for a few minutes until it feels better. 

    It never occurred to me that not everyone experiences this, until a few years ago when I asked around and got quite a few blank stares.

  • http://thewheatandchaff.com Matt Bieber

    That sounds really terrifying, L.  Thanks for sharing this.

  • Lian

    :D   My pleasure.  It’s not actually scary for me…it’s as if every time you saw a kitten, somebody poked you in the ribs.  Or every time you thought of the number seven, you smelled bacon.  It’s just how it is.

    I suspect that my, uh, sensorium like calm better than overstimulation in general.  Sharp things are a bit much, but also bright lights, lots of noise, too much movement.  So I get carsick, can feel ill in amusement parks, and I’m not good at team sports where you have to take in and keep track of many things at once.  One could speculate that this is why I liked to read books and focus on one thing at a time, like a drawing, as a child.  And still do!

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