Hysterical Disorders of Warfare

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. In acceding to Dr. Yealland's request that I should write a short preface to this volume, I was influenced by a desire to lay before the reader some facts about the author and his methods of treatment which otherwise might be overlooked, and to emphasise certain deductions which may fairly be drawn from his experience.

Before taking up the post of Resident Medical Officer at the National Hospital two years ago, Dr. Yealland's interest in psychological problems had been aroused by a period of Asylum work in Canada. It was his wish to supplement this experience by a study of neurology, and he has certainly made the most of the opportunities afforded him in London for this purpose. At the same time the allotment of a number of beds in the Hospital to soldiers who were suffering from hysterical disorders made the question of how quickly these patients could be restored to health and usefulness a matter of urgency. He threw himself into the solution of this problem with characteristic energy, and soon realised that what may be called an intensive method of treatment gave better results than the more prolonged measures generally adopted.