ON MANIC MOOD DISORDER 209
She had a lively, intelligent expression of face, talked a great deal. Continuous motor restlessness when talking; in ordinary conversation no very noticeable flights of ideas; these only showed more clearly during longer recitals. She was very elated, very erotic, flirting and laughing a great deal; very labile, weeping easily at the
memory
of
unhappy experiences;
liked to sulk
a violent scene when the doctor her alone in her room, threatened suicide, so that she had to be removed for a while to the observation room. Soon afterwards she was as euphoric as ever. She was very frank and enjoyed telling of her adventures, but was incapable of putting them down on paper in an orderly fashion. An autobiography still remains to be attempted after several false starts. ostentatiously,
refused to
and once made
visit
She expressed a strong desire to go out, but still harboured thoughts of vengeance on her ex-fiance, threatened to shoot him. Had all sorts of adventurous plans for the future, and once urgently requested to be allowed out in order to answer a newspaper advertisement for an animal trainer, asserting proudly that she did not lack courasfe. In addition, she had intensive plans for marriage. She took the disorderly life she had lived very lightly, and was convinced that things would go better in future. She showed slight insight into the excitement of the last few weeks before her admission. No major depressions or excited states were observed, and no deterioration of the normal state except the present one. Slight increase of excitement during her periods. 210
In
my account
of this case
I
have purposely given a complete
chronicle of the changes in social position in order to illustrate '
the extraordinary instability
Over
and
a period of eleven years, she
restlessness of the
changed her job no
patient. less
than
thirty-two times, in the great majority of cases simply because
she was "sick of
it."
So
far as
one can
rely
on the anamnestic
information, the abnormal emotional state can be followed back into childhood. Apart from the menstrual cycle
no
periodicity
was discoverable. Depressions never seemed to arise spontaneously, but were merely the outcome of circumstances. There was no alcoholism, only an enormous abuse of sweets. The findings—mild flight of ideas, talkativeness, predominantly elated mood, lability, distractibility, pressure of activity, eroticism— 123