The term “Stockholm syndrome” has been thrown around in popular culture for years, but what does it really mean? As it turns out, Stockholm syndrome, and many other syndromes named after major cities across the globe, originated from a real event that left both experts and the public baffled.
Although Stockholm syndrome can happen anywhere, other syndromes such as Jerusalem syndrome and Florence syndrome only occur in their respective city. Individuals can experience intense emotional reactions to art, have a religious experience, or enter into a state of psychosis all because of the city they're visiting.
In the list of famous diseases named after places below, we'll go into the history and theories surrounding the most well-known city-named syndromes of all time and the theories surrounding them.
Stockholm Syndrome Happens When A Hostage Develops A Positive Connection With Their Captor
On August 23, 1973, Jan-Erik Olsson took four people hostage at the Kreditbanken in Stockholm, Sweden. During a six-day standoff with police, Olsson's hostages, Birgitta Lundblad, Elisabeth Oldgren, Kristin Ehnmark, and Sven Safstrom, all began developing sympathy for their captor. Ehnmark even indicated that she had more faith in Olsson than in law enforcement during a call with Sweden's prime minister. As specialists analyzed what happened to the four hostages, psychiatrist Nils Bejerot began referring to the phenomenon as “Stockholm syndrome." The syndrome is considered a coping mechanism and survival technique during extremely traumatic events.
A year later in the United States, 19-year-old newspaper heiress Patty Hearst robbed a bank with a group of criminals who had kidnapped her. After Hearst was arrested and put on trial, her lawyer claimed that Hearst had developed Stockholm syndrome following her kidnapping, which led her to participate in the heist. Stockholm syndrome also gained global attention during the Iran hostage crisis in the late 1970s, when hostages kept in solitary confinement claimed their captors took good care of them.
Lima Syndrome Is The Reverse Of Stockholm Syndrome
In 1996, members of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MTRA) took hundreds of politicians and diplomats hostage during a party hosted by the ambassador of Japan in Lima, Peru. In contrast to Stockholm syndrome, members of the MTRA began developing emotional attachments to their hostages in the months-long crisis. The MTRA released many of their hostages during the crisis, which eventually ended in 1997 following a special military operation.
In addition to feelings of empathy towards captives, Lima syndrome is also believed to cause errors in judgment. For instance, the MTRA released some of the highest-ranking officials first, rather than keeping them as leverage. Age can also be a factor since most of the MTRA members were in their teens and twenties.
London Syndrome Happens When Hostages Are Completely Unwilling To Comply With Their Captors
The term London syndrome was coined in the early 1980s when a group of armed Iranian sepratists stormed the Iranian embassy in London and took its occupants hostage. The captors demanded the release of important Iranian prisoners, but then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher refused to meet their demands. Twenty-six people were held hostage in the embassy for six days as the British government attempted to make a deal with the men, but one of the men held captive was making the situation for his captors extremely difficult. Abbas Lavasani, a press attaché for the embassy, was reportedly quite disagreeable with the militants and refused to cooperate with them. Although the other hostages survived, Lavasani was killed and his body was thrown out of a window by his captors.
Jerusalem Syndrome Causes Tourists To Have Religious Delusions
In 2000, a study was released by a group of psychiatrists about tourists being admitted to the Kfar Shaul Mental Health Centre in Jerusalem for a mental health condition known as “Jerusalem syndrome" which causes religious delusions. Between 1980 and 1993, roughly 1,200 tourists were admitted to the hospital after showing some form of Jerusalem syndrome, which can show up in different forms. In the first form, the person already has a mental health disorder. In the second, the person has no mental health disorder but is extremely religious. In the third, Jerusalem syndrome sets in suddenly, then disappears once the individual leaves the city.
One of the most famous cases of Jerusalem syndrome occurred in November 2017 when 29-year-old Oliver McAfee from Northern Ireland went biking into the Negev Desert and was never seen again. Investigators found torn-out pages of McAfee's Bible along with his own religious writings wedged under rocks and stones. The evidence suggested that McAfee, who was a devout Christian, may have gone out into the desert for 40 days and 40 nights as Jesus did. McAfee was never found, and his case remains unsolved.
Paris Syndrome Is Thought To Be An Extreme Form Of Culture Shock
Often referred to as an extreme form of culture shock, about a dozen people each year are hospitalized with what has become known as “Paris syndrome.” The syndrome can result in physical symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and increased heart rate, as well as psychological symptoms including paranoia and delusions. One sufferer claimed that they were King Louis XIV, and two women traveling together were convinced that their hotel room had been bugged by spies.
What adds to the peculiar nature of Paris syndrome, a term first used in 2004, is that it seems to largely affect Japanese tourists in Paris. Psychiatrists believe that the vast differences between Japanese and French cultures are partly to blame. While some afflicted with Paris syndrome experience long-term psychosis, the effects of the syndrome usually go away upon seeking medical care or leaving the city altogether.
Florence Syndrome Can Cause Breakdowns From Observing The Beauty Of Art
Known as Florence syndrome, Stendhal syndrome, and “The Tourist Disease” by locals, visitors to Florence sometimes find themselves light-headed when viewing Florence, Italy. One of the first cases goes all the way back to 1817 when the author Stendhal wrote about his experience of visiting the Basilica of Santa Croce, which resulted in a racing heartbeat and dizziness due to the Basilica's beauty. However, the term “Stendhal syndrome” didn't come into being until 1979, when Italian psychiatrist Dr. Graziella Magherini attempted to define the surreal experience many tourists had over the centuries.
Although Florence syndrome can be experienced while viewing any art or architecture in the city, there have been cases of seizures and heart attacks while viewing the Birth of Venus by Botticelli. Fortunately, these medical incidents have not been fatal.
