Piblokto - An Arctic Hysteria

Introduction

Piblokto is typical in Inuit people, particularly among women who encounter irrational, aggressive, or dangerous conduct followed by complete amnesia for the entire hysteric events. Inuit, the Eskimos, is known for indigenous peoples possessing similar cultural states abiding in the Arctic and subarctic circles. Piblokto is most prevalent in Inughuit cultured people of polar regions in Greenland, but not confined to these areas. Inuit women are more likely to have the condition. The European people inhabiting the Arctic Circle have also been reported with a similar set of symptoms. Piblokto is regarded to be a type of culture-bound syndrome, a combination of somatic and psychological symptoms recognized within a distinct society or culture.

What Is Piblokto?

Piblokto, often referred to as Arctic hysteria or Pibloktoq, is a form of hysteria where the individual throws off irrational acts and screams lasting for a few hours. These attacks are eventually followed by complete amnesia of the particular piblokto event. It is an acute dissociative reaction common in Inuit but can also occur in other cultures. Most cases reported so far are known to result in females but not lasting more than two hours. Piblokto is considered an abrupt dissociative state occurring in four phases namely social withdrawal, excitement, seizure, and stupor, followed by recovery.

History of Piblokto:

The first incidence of piblokto was reported in 1892 by European explorers. They addressed this phenomenon as prevalent among people living in Arctic places. In addition, they were the first to describe the condition in articles and writings. Of these explorers, one attempted and revealed a comprehensive theory of this condition while exploring Greenland. Later, it was found that the disorder was not restricted to indigenous people as the other sailors also encountered the condition in the early 1800s. Discussions and validation process is enduring on its artifact. In addition, this condition can be the form of a suspect type of culture-bound syndrome.

What Are the Causes of Piblokto?

Piblokto has no solitary cause. However, medical researchers and scientists have described specific determinants owing to the attributable risks of piblokto. These include the following,

• Extreme cold degrees.

• Lack of sunlight.

• Abandoned and desolate state of villages in the Arctic poles.

The other theories demonstrating the development of piblokto are discussed below.

• The culture-bound syndrome is generally associated with hypervitaminosis A or vitamin A toxicity. The native diet and nutrition resources of Eskimos include the liver, fat, and kidneys of the fishes and mammals dwelling in the arctic regions, which are considered to possess a rich source of vitamin A. The toxic states of vitamin A have been reported with the people, dogs, and children of arctics ingesting organ meats, especially the bearded seal and polar bear livers. This validates the causative factor of the culture-bound syndrome.

• The Inuit tradition believes and addresses that evil spirits are the reason behind the piblokto condition. Therefore, they have distinct dominant themes where they communicate with supernatural forces. The people in the spiritual figure use the trance state to communicate with the spirits and attain healing. So, they have a view that assessing the trance state will help in treating and healing people. This becomes a complication when piblokto is a misconception of the actual seizures.

What Are the Four Phases of Piblokto?

Arctic hysteria is prevalent among the polar people, though. It is regarded as an abrupt dissociative episode that generally has four distinct phases. The four phases are discussed below.

• First or Prodrome Phase: This is the primary phase where a woman encounters irritability and social withdrawal. The prodrome phase lasts hours to days and varies according to the individual determinants.

• Second or Excitement Phase: Here, the individual gets an abrupt attack of intense and wild degrees of excitement. So, self-harm is apparent in this second phase. As a result, the woman with piblokto tends to tear clothes, throw objects, scream, or move out of place. This phase lasts thirty minutes, whereas the individual feels a lack of sensitivity to the intense cold degrees.

• Third or Convulsion and Stupor Phase: The third phase is known as convulsion ad stupor, which results from the excitement states. So, the affected woman experiences convulsive seizures. In due course, the woman might be extreme somnolence or a form of coma, which are attributable to the exhaustion from the previous excitement. This phase is a kind of severe and potentially life-threatening phase, lasting for up to twelve hours.

• Final or Recovery Phase: The last yet fourth phase is the recovery one. Here, the woman ensures a complete recovery. As a result, total amnesia is seen with this whole event.

What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Piblokto?

The common symptoms reported with arctic hysteria include the following.

• Seizures.

• Unconscious states.

• Impressionableness.

• Irrational visual suggestions.

• The mania of imitation, repeating all visual and auditory impacts.

• Hypnotic suggestibility.

• Clairvoyance or forethought.

• Fighting susceptibilities.

• Frightening or timid.

• Monotonous improvization.

• Depression.

• Spasms.

• Suicidal behavior.

How Is Piblokto Treated?

No real explanation exists on revealing the cause of piblokto, though several theories and attributable factors have been reported. This condition is becoming rarer, according to the present susceptibilities. The new cases result in less frequent degrees than in the old era. The treatment of the Inuit people generally involves allowing the attacks and episodes to endure without any acts of interference. The third phase is to be considered and treated according to the type and severity of the symptoms.

Conclusion

Piblokto is a culture-based hysterical reaction typically seen in Inuit, particularly with women. Individuals with this state perform a dangerous or irrational act accompanied by amnesia. So they present certain unusual dangerous acts and then utterly forgets the event. The piblokto and other forms of arctic hysterias recover on their own with complete amnesia. As a result, the people were not able to even recognize the attacks. Though it is a rare and tropical base condition, the awareness is still less. So, paying awareness of the condition should be considered first and prior to the treatment strategy. However, the treatment phase is about allowing the state to run its course with no interference since the piblokto-affected individual will return to normal within a while of the amnesia attack.