Introduction
Stendhal syndrome is a psychosomatic disorder that occurs in some individuals when they are in the presence of works of art or architectural works of remarkable beauty.
More precisely, particularly sensitive people who experience Stendhal syndrome experience a wide range of symptoms that can vary in type and intensity. Generally, the effects of the syndrome are transient and mild, although - not knowing exactly what is happening - the individual may be alarmed and require assistance. In other cases, however, the symptomatology of the syndrome in question can manifest itself in severe form and require the intervention of health personnel.
Curiosity: Origin of the Name of Stendhal Syndrome
The name of Stendhal Syndrome, used to indicate psychosomatic affections that are triggered when observing particularly beautiful works of art, derives from the experience described by the French writer of the same name during his visit to the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence. Not surprisingly, this syndrome is also known as the Florence syndrome .
In detail, the name of Stendhal syndrome was attributed to the disorder in question by Graziella Magherini - Italian Freudian psychoanalyst - who for the first time described it in scientific terms in a book he published in 1989 after having rescued, at the hospital Florentine for whom he worked, hundreds of foreign tourists who came to agitation, mood disorders, thought disorders and / or panic disorders that occurred during visits to art places in the city.
What is that
What is Stendhal Syndrome?
Stendhal syndrome is a psychosomatic disorder that occurs in some people when they are faced with works of art - from paintings and frescoes, through statues and sculptures to architectural works of different types - which they consider extremely beautiful .
The manifestation of Stendhal syndrome includes the appearance of numerous psychophysical symptoms that can vary from individual to individual, as can the work that gave rise to the manifestation of the disorder.
Generally, Stendhal syndrome occurs in a sudden and unpredictable way, however, those who have already experienced its symptomatology have greater chances to manifest it again following the vision of other works of art.
Did you know that ...
Symptoms similar to those induced by Stendhal syndrome have been identified and described by psychiatrists in tourists who have also visited cities other than Florence, such as Paris and Jerusalem, thus leading to the identification of the Paris syndrome and the Jerusalem syndrome . This latter syndrome, however, is triggered more than anything else by religious stimuli and not so much by artistic stimuli as occurs in the other types of syndrome mentioned above (by Stendhal and Paris).
Symptoms
What are the symptoms of Stendhal syndrome?
People who experience Stendhal syndrome often claim to be overwhelmed by the beauty of the works they are watching. Other individuals, on the other hand, even claim to feel themselves "going out" from their bodies while they remain enchanted and entranced by what they observe; while others still report feeling a sense of terror .
In addition to these particular experiences, individuals caught by Stendhal syndrome may manifest:
- Widespread malaise;
- Feeling uneasy;
- Sweating;
- agitation;
- Cry;
- Dizziness and Vertigo;
- Nausea and vomit;
- Palpitations and tachycardia;
- Euphoria or depression;
- Epigastric pain.
In some cases, more severe symptoms may occur, such as depersonalization, hallucinations, breathing difficulties, panic attacks and fainting.
An individual affected by the syndrome in question may experience one or more of the above mentioned symptoms. As you can see, some of them are opposed (for example, euphoria and depression). In fact, if in most cases the syndrome seems to cause negative symptoms that often push the individual to feel the need to leave the work, some people can react in the opposite way, showing excitement, exaltation or ecstasy in admiring, to their eyes, so much beauty, so much so that I couldn't get away from the work .
Did you know that ...
From the observations made on the various patients who over the years have manifested the symptomatology of Stendhal syndrome it emerged that individuals who have made multiple trips in short periods of time develop more severe symptoms.
How long do the symptoms induced by Stendhal Syndrome last?
Generally, the symptoms induced by Stendhal syndrome have a relatively short duration and the whole should disappear within a few hours at most. However, cases have been reported where the duration of symptoms lasted even for a week.
When to worry?
If Stendhal syndrome occurs again and again in the same individual, even visiting different museums or cities of art. Or if the symptomatology also occurs in other contexts, it would be good to seek medical attention. In such situations, in fact, it might be necessary to conduct in-depth medical investigations aimed at investigating what the real causes, internal to the individual, are that provoke the disorder in question and possibly establish suitable pharmacological therapies to be associated with psychotherapy. In this regard, it is interesting to note that, in her first description of Stendhal's syndrome, the same Dr. Magherini asserted that the symptoms presented by the patients were connected more than anything else to the personal history of the individual and to the emotions aroused in it by the observation of the work and not so much to the beauty of the work of art itself.
Because it manifests
Why do some individuals experience Stendhal Syndrome?
The exact reason why Stendhal syndrome manifests itself in some individuals and others is not yet completely clear. At the same time, it is very difficult to determine in advance which people the syndrome can manifest itself, as it appears suddenly and unpredictably even in individuals who are completely different from one another. In fact, it is quite complicated to identify a factor common to all the people who have had the opportunity to experience the symptomatology of the psychosomatic disorder in question, with the exception of a great sensitivity that seems to always be present.
Stendhal Syndrome and Neurobiological Mechanisms
In order to identify the causes that trigger the Stendhal syndrome, some research has been conducted.
More precisely, from the studies conducted to investigate the possible neurobiological mechanisms underlying the Stendhal syndrome it emerged that, when an individual observes a work of art, certain brain areas are activated. In detail, in such a situation there seems to be a strong stimulation of:
- Specific brain regions (such as, for example, the amygdala, the anterior cingulate cortex, the lateral and medial orbitofrontal cortex, the ventral striatum, etc.) responsible for the functioning and / or regulation of the affective and emotional sphere, involved in particular way in the formation of both normal and pathological emotional states .
- The mirror neuron system : these are particular types of neurons involved in man's ability to relate to others . In the specific case of the Stendhal syndrome, it seems that the activation of the mirror neuron system gives rise to a particular phenomenon (mechanism of embodied simulation) for which the individual who is observing a work of art generates and tests the same emotional states that the author of the work wanted to express, both at a conscious and an unconscious level, through the realization of that same work.
Treatment
Does Stendhal Syndrome Need Treatment and Treatments?
In many cases, following an episode of Stendhal's syndrome it is not necessary to intervene with any kind of treatment or cure, since the symptoms, particularly when mild, tend to self-purify in a relatively short period of time.
Dr. Magherini herself noted that sometimes the improvement and disappearance of the symptoms of Stendhal syndrome could occur simply by removing patients from works of art for a certain time.
In other cases, on the other hand, it may be necessary to request medical attention, especially if the symptoms are severe and do not tend to resolve themselves.
In such situations it may be necessary to resort to the administration of tranquilizers - even in the absence of real psychiatric illnesses - to calm the state of agitation or anxiety that the patient manifests. Type and dosage of the drug must be established by the doctor after a thorough examination and subsequent diagnosis and after excluding the presence of any contraindications to the use of the chosen drug.
In the event that the syndrome is associated with other types of psychiatric disorders, however, it is advisable to turn to specialist doctors who can provide adequate psychological support and possibly prescribe a pharmacological treatment to be associated with psychotherapy .
Pathology or Normality?
Is Stendhal Syndrome a Psychiatric Pathology?
The proposal to consider Stendhal syndrome as a real disease has been advanced several times, even by Dr. Magherini who coined the name. However, at the time of the publication of the book by the Florentine psychoanalyst, many people remained wary of his descriptions, showing themselves rather reluctant to believe in the possible existence of a true syndrome of this type. According to the most skeptical, in fact, the disorders presented by the tourists described by the psychoanalyst were attributable to a state of debilitation and / or stunning attributable to jet lag, to poor rest or to any crowding present inside the museum or architectural work within which the symptoms had arisen.
Even today, the debate about the possibility of considering Stendhal syndrome as a psychiatric illness or not seems to be still rather heated, also due to the different nuances and intensity with which the disorder can manifest itself in each individual. Because of this diversity, in fact, it is quite difficult to place the syndrome in a precise psychopathological framework.
However, if nothing else, nowadays Stendhal syndrome is recognized as a disorder and has been found in many tourists all over the world. In any case, the fact remains that, when a work of art is observed, the activation of specific brain structures involved in the formation of the emotional experience of the individual occurs, resulting in the appearance of a more or less symptomatology. less severe, which, in some cases, may need appropriate pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatment.
