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Benny: She will do all that. Is she this way with her father too?Mother: Yes. Ask her father.Benny: She doesn’t fear anyone?Mother: No fear at all. When she is angry, nobody knows what she will do.
Sometimes she will grab a knife.Benny: Did she cut anyone?Mother: No. She never cut anyone. When she is angry, we act according to the
situation. She will throw at us whatever she can get her hands on. She will break
the door. Th en her anger will disappear and she will become calm.Th is bahalam (outbursts of anger or fi ts) and use of bad language were frequently
reported symptoms among patients we interviewed. (Sreedevi was also described
by her mother as exhibiting bahalam.) During this admission to the GAMH,
Mary was given the diagnosis vishadam which resembles the diagnosis kaphotm-
adam. Kaphotmadam is characterized by a phlegmatic, depressive and sad dispos-
ition, but lacks the occasional outbursts of anger that characterize vishadam.
Mary and her mother agree that Mary’s problems are to some degree related
to her parents preventing her from becoming a nun:
Mother: One reason is that she wanted to become a nun, but we did not sup-
port this.Benny: Who wanted to become a nun?Mother: She did.Benny: Mary really wanted this, but it was not allowed.Mother: So I said, “Daughter, you are my only daughter. Don’t go off and do
that. Th at is my opinion.” I don’t know whether it might have caused her some
pain.Benny: (to Mary) Did you feel terrible when your father and mother told you
could not become a nun?Mary: Yes.Benny: Do you think that this was the reason for your illness?