In the second half of 1880, Dr Joseph Breuer attended Bertha Pappenheim, who was suffering from a severe cough. Breuer decided Bertha's complaint was a typical tussis nervosa, a nervous cough. Breuer doesn't tell us how he arrived at that assessment. More importantly, he doesn't … [Read more...] about You’ll Never Walk Alone
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Grandma, Superstar
At the bottom of Harris Street, in the Sydney suburb of Pyrmont, an area previously owned by the water police has been redeveloped into a harbourside park. Harris Street ends steeply and a set of stairs has been built from the road down to the park. One day, we were having … [Read more...] about Grandma, Superstar
Its Just a Shot Away
Bertha Pappenheim's illness began in July 1880. She was twenty one and holidaying with her family at the spa town of Bad Ischl. Bertha's father developed a severe chest infection and the devoted daughter insisted on remaining by his bedside. Late one night, Bertha began … [Read more...] about Its Just a Shot Away
You Really Got A Hold On Me
In an earlier blog, I described how Amelia Freud referred to her son as her "golden Sigi." According to Sigmund Freud's son, Martin, Amelia had a lively temper, was impatient, self-willed, sharp-witted and highly intelligent. Freud's niece, Judith Bernays Heller, wrote … [Read more...] about You Really Got A Hold On Me
A Man Like My Mumma Loved
Bertha Pappenheim was the child of two loving parents. However, it seems her father was too enchanted by the imaginative aspect of her personality. Captivated by her childlikeness, he didn't help her to grow into a woman. Given the times, he may have believed Bertha's … [Read more...] about A Man Like My Mumma Loved