In another set of cases an illness is the cause, and she
never rallies entirely, or else some local uterine trouble starts the
mischief, and, although this is cured, the doctor wonders that his
patient does not get fat and ruddy again.
But, no matter how it comes about, whether from illness, anxiety, or
prolonged physical effort, the woman grows pale and thin, eats little,
or if she eats does not profit by it. Everything wearies her,--to sew,
to write, to read, to walk,--and by and by the sofa or the bed is her
only comfort. Every effort is paid for dearly, and she describes herself
as aching and sore, as sleeping ill and awaking unrefreshed, and as
needing constant stimulus and endless tonics. Then comes the mischievous
role of bromides, opium, chloral, and brandy. If the case did not begin
with uterine troubles, they soon appear, and are usually treated in vain
if the general means employed to build up the bodily health fail, as in
many of these cases they do fail. The same remark applies to the
dyspepsias and constipation which further annoy the patient and
embarrass the treatment.
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