Sisterhood of the Wandering Uterus Pin

The word hysteria comes from the Greek word for uterus, hystera (ὑστέρα).

Historically, hysteria was thought to manifest itself only in women (female

hysteria) with symptoms including: anxiety, shortness of breath, fainting,

insomnia, irritability, nervousness, as well as sexually forward behaviour and

a "tendency to cause trouble for others".

It was believed that the uterus itself caused this female hysteria by moving

around a woman's body putting pressure on other organs. Plato's dialogue Timaeus

compares a woman's uterus to a "living creature that wanders throughout a

woman's body, blocking passages, obstructing breathing, and causing disease".

Wait, what?

The diagnosis and treatment of female hysteria was routine for hundreds of

years in Western Europe. Treatments included the wearing of tight belts and

corsets in an attempt to keep the uterus in the correct place and, in extreme

cases, woman in Europe and the United States were forced to enter insane

asylums or undergo forced hysterectomies.

During the early 20th century, the number of women diagnosed with "female

hysteria" sharply declined and the American Psychiatric Association finally

dropped the termhysteria completely in 1952.And surprise, surprise: modern

medicine no longer considers female hysteria to be a real ailment.

Size: ~1"

This hard enamel pin is cast from silver nickel and filled with colorful enamel.