Three days later he was found at one of the train stations in a small town located about two hundred kilometers from the capital.
The parents were shocked. The family is quite prosperous, friendly, no squabbles, scandals - in general, nothing that could push the child to take such a desperate step as running away.
However, the culprit of the commotion himself could not really explain why he went on the run. He just said that he suddenly felt the need to go somewhere. Igor remembered little about his journey. It is not clear why, but Igor’s parents did not take him to the doctors: perhaps they were afraid that the doctors would find something mental disorder and the child will be registered at a psychoneurological dispensary. Or maybe they just hoped that something like this wouldn’t happen again.
Indeed, for several years everything went well: Igor studied normally, was friends with his peers, attended some clubs... That is, he was like everyone else. However, when he was fifteen years old, he suddenly disappeared again. I went to school and... ended up in Sochi.
There he was detained by the police, as Igor was put on the all-Union wanted list. One can only imagine what his parents went through during those days when nothing was known about the fate of their son. Igor again could not intelligibly explain the reason for his action: they say, he left the house, and then he was “pulled” somewhere. I ended up at the station and boarded the train. He remembers what happened next vaguely.
This time, the parents finally took the teenager to the doctors. After a thorough examination, Igor was diagnosed with dromomania (from the Greek dromos - run, path and mania), that is, an irresistible attraction to wandering and changing places.
Despite the fact that this disease is not very common, since time immemorial people have been known who suddenly, for inexplicable reasons, disappeared from their home, and then, unknown to themselves, found themselves far from it, in another city or even country. Moreover, a time period from several days to several months often disappeared from their consciousness, just when they were on the road.
These incidents were previously considered to be the machinations of the devil, and the “possessed” themselves were persecuted by the Inquisition. Later, psychiatrists paid attention to dromomaniacs, but they did not make much progress in understanding the mechanisms of the onset of the disease and its course.
However, most experts believe that this disorder develops in combination with other disorders, as a consequence of head injuries, concussions and brain diseases.
Most often, dromomania acts as a reflection of schizophrenia, epilepsy, hysteria and other disorders. Moreover, it is mainly men who are prone to this disease. Elimination of the disease (along with other symptoms) is possible only with special treatment.
The patients themselves usually say that they suddenly “come over” and they take off from their place and drive or walk, without knowing where or why. It is almost impossible to fight the disease on your own.
Professor A.V. Snezhnevsky writes: “Initially, as with any drive, the patient tries to suppress this emerging desire, but it becomes more and more dominant, irresistible, and finally reaches such a degree that the patient suffering from it, without thinking about the fight, strives for realization of desire, often, even during work, he leaves her and goes to the nearest station, pier, often without a penny of money, without warning anyone, boards a train, a ship and goes wherever his eyes look.
This trip usually lasts several days. The patient at this time is not eating well, is in poverty, but, nevertheless, travels and changes places. And then all this passes, a state of relief and mental relaxation sets in.
Such patients, half-starved, dirty, exhausted, are returned to their place of residence by the police or have difficulty getting back themselves. There comes, sometimes a very short, bright period, and then, after a while, everything repeats itself."
Igor, mentioned above, despite the fact that he was treated for a long time, did not lose this painful wanderlust with age. Already as an adult married man, three times a year, for no apparent reason, he would take off and disappear.
He returns about two or three weeks later, dirty and tattered. His wife, of course, suffered greatly, but she could not do anything, just as the doctors could not do anything. And it’s also a shame that a person can travel halfway around the country during an attack, but still not see or remember anything.
By the way, dromomania is often attributed to tramps and homeless children.
Indeed, among the minor “travelers” there are children possessed by a painful craving for vagrancy. However, in most cases the reasons are not medical, but social.
The child is running away from his own problems or family problems. Many people are attracted by the fact that drugs and alcohol are easily accessible to them outside their doorstep. As for adult tramps who have left their homes forever, then, according to psychiatrists, dromomania occurs only in 3-4% of cases (regardless of the country, region, nationality, etc.).
This opinion is fully confirmed by data from the St. Petersburg branch of the International Humanitarian Organization Doctors Without Borders.
According to their study, 3.8% of homeless people left their housing due to personal choice, and only 0.2% lost their housing due to mental health problems.
Can professional travelers be called dromomaniacs? They, too, cannot stay in one place for a long time; they are also drawn by the wind of wanderings.
However, unlike sick people, they set off on a journey quite consciously, not spontaneously, they think through the route in advance, etc. And most importantly, they remember all the trips very well. And yet, it is quite likely that light form they have this mental disorder.
It is difficult to imagine that a person, voluntarily giving up all the benefits of civilization, would embark on a dangerous and sometimes unpredictable journey.
American scientists have identified the gene responsible for the desire to travel. About 20% of the population has it. Life decided to turn to psychologists and figure out whether natural tourists really exist and whether travel addiction can be a disease.
The traveler gene, discovered by scientists last month, is called DRD4-7R. Evolutionary biologist Justin Garcia suggests that it was this gene that motivated prehistoric humans to explore and seek out new territories.
True, Russian experts consider this discovery to be one of the jokes about British scientists. But the possibility of becoming truly dependent on travel, when it is difficult to stop, cannot be ruled out.
Traveling can become as addictive as drug addiction. There is a release of endorphin into the brain - an internal drug that acts like heroin and leads to a high. When you stop traveling or return from a trip, you experience symptoms similar to withdrawal (depression, anxiety, excessive irritability), says psychiatrist Alexander Fedorovich.
Famous American travel blogger Nomadic Matt says that he always feels depressed when he returns home. However, he was not born a traveler; his first trip was only at the age of 23.
Post-travel depression is real. Anyone who has returned from a trip knows what I'm talking about. We always think how wonderful it is to go on vacation, but much less often we realize that returning is more difficult than leaving. Online communities help me, where I find like-minded people, but only a little, writes Matt.
The blogger explains his depression by the fact that during the trip he changes internally, but the world remains the same.
When I left for a trip around the world, I imagined what the world would be like when I returned in a year. But when I arrived home, everything turned out to be as before. My friends had the same jobs, went to the same bars and did all the same things. But I was “renewed”: I met new people, learned a lot of new things. It's like the whole world remains frozen while you're traveling,” Matt explains.
However, psychotherapists warn: if you constantly want to travel, then you are avoiding reality.
Very often, the desire to constantly travel is a way of interacting with society. A person commits certain neurotic mechanisms that result in forms of avoidant behavior. If a person is incompetent in something, then he constantly wants to get away from it, to run away,” says psychiatrist Alexander Fedorovich.
According to the expert, people who constantly dream of going somewhere experience pleasure not only from emotional experiences, but also from physical ones. However, under the guise of pleasure from hobbies and hobbies, there is a reluctance to take part in real, everyday life.
As long as the person himself is not bothered by this situation and it does not come to the detriment of his work and family, treatment is not necessary, continues Fedorovich.
Most often, this situation worries the family itself. On women's forums you can find many complaints about traveler husbands.
A friend had a traveler husband who spent all the family’s free money on his hobby. At the same time, the wife herself received condemnation, especially from males, that she did not share the interests of her husband and was imposing some everyday nonsense on such an extraordinary person, writes Yulia on the forum.
Travel psychologist Michael Brain, who first introduced this concept, says that travel helps to quickly satisfy highest level needs for Maslow's pyramid- self-actualization (realization of one’s goals and personality development).
While traveling, we grow and mature and achieve our goals much faster than in ordinary life. In everyday life, we are busy satisfying the most basic human needs (food, shelter, etc.), and during travel, spiritual needs are satisfied. And this happens faster and more noticeably for ourselves. Therefore, of course, we want to travel more and more. To some extent, this is a form of drug addiction, Brain explains.
In addition, there are pathological travelers, their scientific name is dromomaniacs. These are people who cannot stay in one place. A similar term refers to people who have a constant desire to run away from home. This desire is normal in childhood and adolescence.
But if the disorder manifests itself in mature age, you should consult a psychotherapist. A specialist will help a dromomaniac learn to manage his experiences by increasing a person’s self-awareness and level of responsibility.
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Signs:
- anxiety
- depression
- aggressive behavior
- hallucinations
- suicidal thoughts, psychosis
- waking dreams
- paranoia
Bonus: Evil World Syndrome
Traveling is always a risky business and anything can happen, so it is better not to leave the house at all. This is roughly what the essence of the evil world syndrome sounds like. It affects people who often watch TV and willingly absorb all negative information - disasters, murders, terrorist attacks. Paranoia gradually arises and it begins to seem that if they step outside the threshold, the worst thing will happen to them and it is better to stay at home and watch TV a little more.
What to do?
In order not to spoil the impression of your vacation, take good care of yourself and your loved ones - avoid excessive overload while traveling, do not forget to eat well and sleep. Special attention required by those people who are prone to depression, are depressed or have recently experienced unpleasant events. Before you travel, find out as much as you can about the place you're going to, don't forget the medications you're used to taking, and know in advance where you can go for help in case of unforeseen circumstances.
Do you easily adapt to new conditions or prefer to relax in a familiar place? Share in the comments!
7 mental disorders that travel can lead to.
Dromomania
Usually this disorder is diagnosed in adolescents who leave home, and is not considered something catastrophic - an overly accentuated manifestation of the characteristics mental development. However, increasingly, psychiatrists are extending dromomania to cases of adult vagrancy. It is expressed as a craving for meaningless trips around the world. According to narcologist Ivan Sosin, the tendency to travel is not inherently far from vagrancy. This is a phenomenon of overcompensation, since one is always drawn to travel from a feeling of unwellness and psychological dissatisfaction.
Fantastic reality
This is another serious one psychological problem, which occurs among the vast majority of tourists, especially Russian ones. “The new environment is so different from what they are used to that they subconsciously believe that what they are doing does not really matter,” says David Schlim, director of the Jackson Hole Clinic in Wyoming. “So they do things they wouldn’t normally do, like have more sex with casual partners, ride a bike without a helmet and ride a motorcycle barefoot.” This disorder even worsens moderate consumption alcohol.
Love ship syndrome
Western psychologists have identified this beautifully named syndrome because up to 10% of travelers contract sexually transmitted infections. Psychiatry doctor Helen McKellan from Tulane University says that this personality disorder is expressed in the emergence or increase in desire for casual sexual relationships. One college doctor summed up the main problems of travel for him this way: “My students don’t get malaria, they get pregnant.”
Traveler's psychosis
This phenomenon happened all the time among former Soviet people who began to travel abroad after it was raised iron curtain. New unusual foods, a very different culture, a different climate, and overwork can lead to a temporary but serious breakdown. It manifests itself as ordinary psychosis: inability to concentrate, loss of understanding and appreciation, denial of the obvious, childish behavior, etc. Although this condition passes quickly if the person does not suffer from chronic mental illness, behind a short time the traveler may cause injury or physical harm to himself and others.
Stendhal syndrome
This has long been known functional disorder associated with the influence of grandiose and masterpiece works of art, majestic nature, etc. per person. The syndrome is named after the writer, as he was the first to describe symptoms consisting of dizziness, absent-mindedness, and hallucinations. This happened to Stendhal in Florence, recorded in the book “Naples and Florence: a journey from Milan to Reggio”: “When I left the Church of the Holy Cross, my heart began to beat, it seemed to me that the source of life had dried up, I walked, afraid of collapsing on earth... I saw masterpieces of art generated by the energy of passion, after which everything became meaningless, small, limited...".
Jerusalem syndrome
Not so much rare syndrome, found among Christians and Jews - pilgrims. It is expressed in the fact that upon contact with shrines, a person suddenly begins to feel chosen, as if he possesses the supernatural powers of a prophet. Of course, this manifests itself most often in Jerusalem, since it is the center of ancient shrines. Those who experience this syndrome especially hard strive to save the world, begin to preach various things inappropriately, and behave theatrically. Sometimes their behavior becomes dangerous, and then they need to be forcibly hospitalized.
Paris syndrome
A unique phenomenon that affects many people, but especially the Japanese. Perhaps this is because it was a Japanese psychiatrist working in Paris, Hiroaki Ota, who identified this disorder in 1986. It turns out that about ten thousand Japanese apply for psychiatric help after a trip to Paris, because people there are unfriendly and aggressive towards them. “They travel expecting hospitality and are met with the complete opposite. Considering that Paris for them is the standard of beauty and grace and architecture and people, the nerves of the Japanese cannot stand it,” explains psychologist Erve Benhamou.
Are there really born travelers or is travel addiction a disease whose origins should be sought in childhood? The desire to run away from home is an escape from reality. If the disorder manifests itself in adulthood, then the travel-hungry person – the dromomaniac – should consult a psychotherapist. A specialist will help a dromomaniac learn to manage his experiences by increasing a person’s self-awareness and level of responsibility. Dromomania (Greek δρόμος “running”, Greek μανία “madness, insanity”), vagabondage (French “vagrancy”) - an impulsive desire to change places.
– Traveling can become as addictive as drug addiction.
There is a release of endorphin into the brain - an internal drug that acts like heroin and leads to a “high”. When you stop traveling or return from a trip, you experience symptoms similar to withdrawal (depression, anxiety, excessive irritability), says psychiatrist Alexander Fedorovich.
Famous American travel blogger Nomadik Matt says that he always feels depressed when he returns home. However, he was not born a traveler; his first trip was only at the age of 23.
– Post-travel depression is real. Anyone who has returned from a trip knows what I'm talking about. We always think how wonderful it is to go on vacation, but much less often we realize that returning is more difficult than leaving. Online communities help me, where I find like-minded people, but only a little, writes Matt.
The blogger explains his depression by saying that while traveling he changes internally, but the entire world around him remains the same.
– When I went on a trip around the world, I imagined what the world would be like when I returned in a year. But when I arrived home, everything turned out to be as before. My friends had the same jobs, went to the same bars and did all the same things. But I was “renewed” - I met new people, learned a lot of new things. It's like the whole world remains frozen while you're traveling,” Matt explains.
However, psychotherapists warn: if you constantly want to travel, this means that you try to avoid reality.
– Very often the desire to constantly travel is a way of interacting with society. A person commits certain neurotic mechanisms that result in forms of avoidant behavior. If a person is incompetent in something, then he constantly wants to get away from it, to run away,” says psychiatrist Alexander Fedorovich.
According to the expert, people who constantly dream of going somewhere experience pleasure not only from emotional experiences, but also from physical ones. However, under the guise of pleasure from hobbies and interests there is a hidden reluctance to take part in real, everyday life.
“As long as the person himself is not bothered by this situation and it does not come at the expense of his work and family, treatment is not necessary,” Fedorovich continues.
Most often, this situation worries the family itself. On women's forums you can find many complaints about traveler husbands.
– A friend had a traveler husband who spent all the family’s free money on his hobby. At the same time, the wife herself received condemnation, especially from males, that she did not share the interests of her husband and was imposing some everyday nonsense on such an extraordinary person,” Yulia writes on the forum.
Travel psychologist Michael Brain, who first introduced this concept, says that travel helps to quickly satisfy the highest level of needs according to Maslow’s pyramid - self-actualization (realization of one’s goals and personality development).
– While traveling, we grow and mature and achieve our goals much faster than in ordinary life. In everyday life, we are busy satisfying the most basic human needs (food, shelter, etc.), and during travel, spiritual needs are satisfied. And this happens faster and more noticeably for ourselves. Therefore, of course, we want to travel more and more. To some extent, it’s a form of drug addiction,” Brain explains.
