Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Alcohol

  • Notes from writing a character with a bleeding disorder

    Nicole HebdonBuffalo, New York, United States I have read two books that feature characters with bleeding disorders. The first was a used paperback with a neon green and blue cover, like bowling alley carpet under a black light. I do not remember the title or the author’s name or much of the plot, but I…

  • Lovis Corinth and the sick father

    Franz Heinrich Lovis Corinth (1858-1925) began his career as a realistic painter, showing things on canvas as they are seen in reality. Thus in His Father on his Sickbed (Stadel Museum, Frankfurt) we see the father in bed, sick but perhaps not mortally so. His loving daughter keeps watch by the bedside. She has arranged…

  • It’s elementary: The addictions of Sherlock Holmes

    Kevin R. LoughlinBoston, Massachusetts, USA One might ask, why write about the addictions of a fictional character? The answer is that there is often a fine line between reality and fiction. The New York Times columnist Bret Stephens recently quoted a survey that found 20% of British teenagers thought that Winston Churchill was a fictional…

  • The door to recovery

    Irene MetznerGlenn YoungkrantzChicago, Illinois, United States Stories about addiction are often filled with despair, but they don’t have to be: this is a true story in two parts. The first is the perspective of a patient, and the second that of his doctor, as they chose to be hopeful. Part I In my own eyes, I was a drunken loser for over thirty…

  • The iron crab

    Sean VarnerBaltimore, Maryland, United States You only live twice:Once when you are bornAnd once when you look death in the face.— Ian Fleming, You Only Live Twice In 1955 the thriller writer Ian Fleming traveled to Istanbul for an Interpol conference, which at first he found “spectacularly dull.”1 This was to change dramatically on the…

  • Heroes and alcohol

    Cal BartleyPenarth, South Wales, United Kingdom It would seem that literary heroes cannot function without alcohol, as so many great books reference alcohol in a positive light. Even if it does not lubricate the plot, a glance at many classics suggest that a stiff drink is needed for the hero to successfully reach the final…

  • Three doctor’s visits

    Zara AzizBristol, England Only one week ago Yasmin had been at the same flats to see her patient, Jenny Johnson. Jenny was a lovely lady of around fifty-two, with a lilting Irish accent and a penchant for saving stray dogs. But she sometimes missed medication and when she relapsed all hell broke loose. Rumour had…

  • Alcohol and the art of David Teniers Jr.

    Mirjana Stojkovic-IvkovicBelgrade, Serbia David Teniers the Younger (1610–1690) was one of the most prolific and versatile Flemish artists. About 2000 pictures have been attributed to him, including replicas and copies, and at least 900 paintings have been accepted as his genuine work. In his lifetime he was respected as one of the greatest painters of…

  • Dead people healing alcoholism

    Maria BarnaSibiu, Romania In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, there were many villages in the Moldavia region of Romania where doctors hardly ever came. When people became ill they found hope in prayers or in the secret knowledge of initiated women. Thus the treatment of alcoholism was based on empirical and magical medicine.…

  • Finding a voice: Poetry and images

    Donald RoachOmaha, Nebraska, USA Poet’s statement This poem was created out of a life of childhood abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, desperation, and recovery, enabling me to rediscover a life worth living, an affirmation of the human person, and a newfound face. Sober eyesYou know there was a timeWhen I was in a dark placeThere…