NEUROTIC PARASITISM
The psychopathic patient may be regarded as a case of parasitism.
The parasite, living on his host, gradually loses all active
functions, a condition followed by atrophy of organs no longer
necessary to the life existence of the organism.
According to Demoor, “Atrophy begins with function when an organ
has become useless. This uselessness may arise from two causes:
the function may be no longer useful to the individual or to the
species, or it may be assumed by another organ.” When an organism
turns parasite it is an economy of nutrition and energy to save as
much as possible. The tendency of parasitism is to dispense with
unnecessary functions in the struggle for existence.
The loss of function is from the less useful, to the more
useful, to the functions absolutely indispensable to survival;
from the less essential, to the more essential, to functions
absolutely essential to the life existence of the individual. The
life activity of the parasite becomes more and more narrowed,
circumscribed, and dwindles down to a few functions requisite
to its life existence, namely self-preservation, nutrition, and
reproduction.
With the further increase of parasitism even the digestive and
reproductive functions become simplified, the parasitic individual
becomes reduced to the most fundamental of all impulses, the
impulse of self-preservation and reproduction.
The penalty of parasitic life is the _simplification_ of organic
activities, the atrophy of all higher and complex life processes.
This is what takes place in the case of the psychopathic
individual. All higher activities, all higher interests cease.
In many neurotic cases of the severe type even _the sexual instinct
becomes gradually atrophied. The patient’s life is narrowed down
to the impulse which is absolutely requisite for individual life
existence, namely the impulse of self-preservation with its
concomitant fear instinct._
The growth of the impulse of self-preservation with its fear
instinct brings about their hypertrophy which in turn hastens the
degenerative processes or atrophy of all higher and more complex
activities. The psychopathic patient in the process of degeneration
and atrophy falls so low that not only moral, social, intellectual,
but simpler psychomotor reactions become gradually diminished and
atrophied. _In severe cases even the instinct of sex, requisite
for the preservation of the species, is made subservient to the
impulse of self-preservation and the fear instinct._
In psychopathic life all activities are narrowed down to the
pettiness of individual existence. It is not sex, it is not
species-interests, nor conflicts, nor self-repressions that trouble
the neurotic patient. An abnormal impulse of self-preservation and
fear instinct are at the bottom of all psychopathic miseries. _All
psychopathic, neurotic interests are reduced to the sorry life of
self and fear._
Lacking interest in anything but himself, terrorized by the fear of
existence, the psychopathic patient lives a dreary, monotonous life
out of which he seeks to escape. Monotony, _ennui_, indifference
form the curse of his life. The patient is in a frantic condition,
constantly in quest of interests which he cannot enjoy. Nothing can
interest him, because he has no other interest but himself, and
that is so narrow, that it can hardly fill existence.
As a matter of fact he is afraid to meet his fears, he is afraid
of himself. He is afraid to come to a decision, never at peace,
ever at war with himself. He is bored with himself, wearied with
everything and with everybody. He is constantly eager to find
new pastures and new excitements, so as to fill with some living
interest his poor, narrow, mean, short existence obsessed by fear,
misery, wretchedness, and brutish selfishness.
The patient is afraid to work, because it may “fatigue and
exhaust” him, and may bring about a state of disease, while he
looks for health. He has no interest, because he only thinks of his
little self, reduced to digestion, evacuation, and sleeping. The
psychopathic patient leads an inactive existence of a sluggard, a
lazy, idle existence of a parasite, and still he is driven to life
and activity which, from the very nature of his narrow, parasitic
individuality, he can no longer enjoy. He has the ideals of a hero
and lives the life of a coward. This puts the patient in a state
of dissatisfaction, discontent, and ceaseless contest with himself
and others. Fear and self never leave him at peace. He is ever in a
state of agitation, restlessness, and anxiety.
Obsessed with the anxious fears of self-impulse, the patient avoids
the terrors of life, and drags the grey, monotonous existence of
a worm. Hence there is a tendency in the psychopathic patient to
be on the lookout for ever new energetic personalities, lean on
them, suck out all the energies he possibly can, then reject his
new friends unhesitatingly and brutally, and be again in search for
new personalities who can disperse, for ever so brief a time, the
fearful monotony and dread of his miserable, psychopathic, neurotic
existence.
The neurotic patient may be characterized as a psychopathic leech,
or truer still, a psychopathic vampire. For it is on the life and
blood of other people that the psychopathic ogre is enabled to
carry on his bewitched, accursed, narrow, selfish existence, full
of terror and anguish of life.
“When the attack is on,” exclaimed a psychopathic patient, affected
with cardiac palpitation and intense fear, “I am too d----d scared
about myself to think about her!” referring to the woman with whom
he was in love. The psychopathic patient is a parasitic ogre with
an hypertrophied ego.
Patients who claim to love children when the latter are well and
healthy, avoid them, like a pest, when the children happen to fall
sick, for fear of disease and for fear that the sick children may
produce an evil influence on the patient’s “sensitive” nerves.
The patient is afraid to come near sickness, or even afraid to
hear of evil things, such as description of misfortunes, ailments,
accidents, and sufferings, because they may upset him and arouse
his fears of himself.
All the patient wants is to be surrounded with cheer, joy,
merriment, excitement, and happiness which he is unable to enjoy.
The psychopathic patient is in constant search after happiness. Not
that he is interested in the problem of happiness from a moral,
philosophical, or even purely religious standpoint. His interest is
of the crudest, the meanest, the most selfish kind. It is happiness
for self,--for a low, mean, short, and brutish self. Psychopathic
search for happiness is the anguish of the beast, cornered by
terror. The patient is tortured by an unsuccessful search for
happiness, ever tantalized by self and fear. Egotism, fear, ennui,
restlessness, anxiety, discord are the harpies of psychopathic,
neurotic life.
_The love of the psychopathic patient is at bottom self-love_; it
is like the love of the wolf for the lamb. Lover, husband, child,
friend, father, mother, brother, sister, are all victims to the
patient’s greedy self.
The fear instinct has a positive and negative aspect. There is
the fear of life, fear of putting forth energy in meeting the
exigencies of life. The patient is afraid to participate in the
struggle of life. Struggle spells to him danger, peril,--fear of
the external world. Struggle means to him fear, suffering, and
misery. The patient avoids society, avoids not only strangers, but
even his acquaintances, friends, and sometimes his own family.
While he constantly craves for ever new stimulations to his
depleted nerves, he is at the same time in terror of everything
that is _new_. The patient is afraid of life, he shirks duties,
responsibilities, efforts, and joys of life struggle. Hence his
love of automatism, routine, and fear-fatigue.
The fear manifests itself more often in the form of the negative
side of life, such as fear of sickness, weakness, incapacity,
degradation, loss of vitality, and generally the fear of death.
_Neurotic states are due to fear of life and fear of death._