Kirsten MllerVahl was dealing with a huge mystery. Mller-Vahl was a psychiatrist at Hannover Medical School, Germany, and was heading its Tourettes outpatient section. She was being overwhelmed by patients who were experiencing tics like nothing she had ever seen.
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The tics were complex and involved several muscle groups. Strangely, the symptoms were almost identical. They had identical symptoms. She says that the symptoms were not only identical but also similar. Mller-Vahl has been treating Tourettes patients for 25 years and was certain that all were formally diagnosed. A student came forward, who had never seen these tics before.
All of the patients displayed the same tic-like behavior as the YouTube star. Gewitter im Kopf (meaning thunder in the head) is Jan Zimmermann's 23-year old life with Tourettes. Its purpose detre is to share openly and humorally about Zimmermans disorder. The channel has amassed more than 2,000,000 subscribers in just two years.
Zimmerman's tics can be very specific. Zimmerman can often be seen using the phrases Fliegende Haie, Heil Hitler, Du bist Hlich (you are ugly), as well as pommes (chips). He also throws pens and smashes eggs at school.
Mller-Vahls clinic patients were very much imitating Zimmerman's tics. Many were also referring to their condition with the YouTuber's nickname Gisela. Her clinic saw approximately 50 patients who had similar symptoms to Zimmerman. Many of his videos were watched by patients. Zimmerman didn't respond to our request for comment.
Mller-Vahl states that Tourettes symptoms can be varied, but similar symptoms are more common than others. The classic tics are short, simple, and abrupt. They can be found in the eyes, face or head. The syndrome usually manifests around six years of age in boys, with an average of three to four boys for every one girl. She says Tourettes is a rare disorder that causes an uncontrollable urge in people to utter obscenities.
What if it wasn't Tourettes? Mller-Vahl said that these patients actually had functional movement disorder (FMD). Although it might look like Tourettes, the actual cause of FMD, which is neurological in nature, is believed to be due to abnormalities such as those in the basal Ganglia. FMD is characterized by hardware being intact but not software functioning properly. Tourettes are characterized by the hardware working perfectly but the software not. FMD patients are unable to control their bodies physically, and they have lost control of the reins. This can lead to involuntary, abnormal behavior.
Mller-Vahl explained to some patients that they didn't have Tourettes and all of their symptoms disappeared. Others found that psychotherapy significantly improved their symptoms. Mller-Vahl, along with her colleagues, were still puzzled by the number of patients suffering from the exact same symptoms.
Mass sociogenic illness, also known as mass psychogenic disease or historically mass hysteria, spreads like a social viral. Instead of being visible as a virus, the pathogen is invisible. Emotional distress is thought to trigger symptoms. It is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. However, it bears a strong resemblance with conversion disorder which involves the conversion of emotional distress into symptoms. Mass sociogenic illness has been more common in women than it was in men. Although the reason is not known, one theory is that women are more likely to develop this illness because they have higher levels of anxiety or depression.
