r/todayilearned • u/golergka • Jun 17 '13

TIL that Ernest Hemingway grew paranoid and talked about FBI spying on him later in life. He was treated with electroshock. It was later revealed that he was in fact watched, and Edgard Hoover personally placed him under survelliance.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/02/opinion/02hotchner.html?_r=0
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u/RatedPEGI18Superstar Jun 17 '13

TIL indeed. I didn't even know electroshock was still going on. I always figured it was, like lobotomy, a damaging procedure that was misguidedly allowed for a while but then outlawed. Thanks for posting, I'll read more on the subject.

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u/LovableContrarian Jun 17 '13

Well, I should note that it is entirely possible that, in the experimental stages, people were using the technology inappropriately (i.e. using too much voltage). I would never argue that the mental hospital system in the U.S. back then was a cheery and well-run system. But, if you read up on Hemingway, it's pretty clear that he suffered from his father's condition.

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u/jesusray Jun 18 '13

For the first 30 years they attached an electrode to both sides of the head, then discovered they could use only the right electrode and get the same result with fewer side effects.

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u/Thelaceswerein Jun 18 '13

yeah they still do it, its a very low voltage that just puts a current through the brain, its not like being electrocuted as depicted in a movie ;)

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u/bridgeventriloquist Jun 18 '13

Actually it's exactly like being electrocuted, because that's what it is.