The Introverted Detective

Nellie Bly, real name Elizabeth Jane Cochran, was a great investigative reporter that wrote many great stories, but one made it into the movies. One of her greatest stories included traveling the world in 72  days, but she is most known for going undercover at the asylum on Blackwell Island, NY. The book was titled Ten Days in the Madhouse. Blackwell Island, NY Blackwell Asylum was the first mental hospital in New York. It was overcrowded, which resulted in a lack of internal administration, disease outbreaks, improper diet and nutrition, and bad living conditions. To reduce costs they even hired convicts as attendants. They had accommodations for 640 in 1868 and had 1035 people in the building. More buildings were built throughout time. Female and immigrant patients were many, though men still ended up here. The newest and most violent were put in one building, and if new patients weren't violent, moved to another building. Nellie Bly checked herself into here in 188...

The term "female hysteria" or "wandering womb" was used from 4th Century BC  to the 19th century and declined when psychology became more understood. Today we don't use either term. Thankfully, we have doctors who understand how the female body functions, gynecologists. Basic Beliefs  On Hysteria What was considered female hysteria?  It was considered common, chronic, and only applied to women. Here's a list. Hysteria Symptoms - anxiety  -shortness of breath  - fainting  -nervousness - sexual desire  -insomnia  - fluid retention (periods)  -heaviness in the abdomen  - irritability - loss of food/sexual appetite  -being sexually forward  - being a troublemaker If you laughed or cringed at that list and pointed out several symptoms had several explanations (including "I don't want to have sex with Mr. X" or pregnancy) you will be glad to know this is no longer a valid diagnosis. Most of these have to do with bein...

We talk about mental health awareness, but as a writer, how do you write a character with  depression? What does that look like, thought-wise? Let's dive into that. Depression is defined as a mood disorder causing persistent dark, sad thoughts and loss of interest, according to the Mayo Clinic. That being said, I know several examples of people you would never guess had depression. There is such a thing as "masking" your true thoughts and emotions. It also causes one to isolate and distance themselves from the support they might have. One reason to check in on someone with this disorder is that they may be battling dark thoughts alone. Most successful suicides that were caused by depression happened with no warning or an alarming, sudden peace.  What Others See When it comes to character building, be aware some people do talk about their depression and seek help. Some also suffer alone and wear a "mask" until it becomes too terrible to deal wit...

Toxic masculinity is a term we hear often, especially when connected to mental illness and men. It is created by society and can be damaging to someone's mental health, but what is it? Today I'm going to break down the idea of toxic masculinity. I've mentioned this idea briefly in previous blogs (PTSD and gender in film). It refers to a particularly harmful concept of what real men should be, including aggressive dominance and not showing emotions (thus, not releasing them). "The Man Box" The man box can be best explained as a constricting list of standards for manhood. I'm going to list out some of what these can be before I continue. 1. no vulnerability  2. strong at all times  3. only anger-related emotions can be shown   4. no signs of weakness  5. aggressive and powerful are good   Most of these can be summed up as not being "feminine", emotional, weak, or vulnerable. What happens when someone doesn't conform to t...

As an avid reader of introvert blogs, and an introvert, I know that being wired differently isn't easy in a society built by extroverts. I have nothing against extroverts, never have, but the fact remains that being wired differently makes life harder. What's the difference between an introvert and extrovert? I have a previous blog on that topic if you're confused or don't know the difference. If you click on the archives it will be there. This post is about writing introverts, specifically from the perspective of an introvert. Everyday conversations When it comes to personal friends, we can talk your ear off or be completely comfortable sitting beside someone, but when it comes to people we just met or large crowds we can become bored, lonely, or uncomfortable, which then leads us to be quieter, and instead turn our attention to the dog in the living room or reading people in silence. Comfortable silence is sitting beside a friend reading; uncomfortable ...

Recently, my boyfriend's family introduced me to several Youtube channels involving people exploring abandoned places. It looked fun, I told my boyfriend. Then he mentioned mold and how you have to do your research on where you are going, that you have to be careful. Without further ado, I present the dangers and fun of exploring abandoned places. First of all, is it legal? Let's start there. Do Your Research When going to do this, you need to ask yourself whether you will be trespassing on someone's property. You can see my blog on self-defense for a glimpse of what can happen when you do (Castle doctrine, they can shoot you in Ohio!). While you can gain rights by trespassing for a long time (squatting is the term), it is extremely frowned upon to do that. So is breaking and entering. No Trespassing sign and padlocks mean one thing: STOP! In short, you may want to do some legal searching to see if anyone, alive or dead, owns/owned the property, and who it ...

We all know about Ted Bundy being real, but what else in media was based on real-life crimes? I know I said I'd talk about Arsenic and Old Lace, but another blogger already did, so I looked around at some other cases of true-crime-turned-film. Most of what I found was obvious and horror-related, but here is what I found, obvious or not. Psycho, a film that has terrified many, was based on a real-life crime, which, frankly, terrifies me. Also, the movies The Boston Strangler, American Psycho, and Halloween. Let's start with one I led with. Psycho This Alfred Hitchcock film stars Norman Bates, but it was actually based on Ed Gein. Gein was also obsessed with his own mother. Some experts have said he used women's skin to dress like his late mother. Terrified yet? Yeah, me too.  In 1957 a woman named Bernice Worden went missing, and Gein was last to see her alive. The police later found her and other womens' remains in his farmhouse. This guy also exhume...