ty of cases the sexual sphere can be
influenced only through the system at large, I will state _first_, that
I have seen cases where local electrical treatment had utterly failed
to do the slightest good, respond favorably to the baths, and _second_,
that where success was met with, it was only after persistent treatment,
continued long enough to modify favorably the condition of the entire
organism, and through this the objective sphere.
The stimulant and tonic effects under consideration, although shared to
some extent by other methods of electrization, are here far more
comprehensive and pronounced, a fact which is not surprising, when we
reflect that in the electric bath not only are all the organs
_indirectly_ influenced through stimulation of the nervous centres, but
each separate organ is at the same time _directly_ acted upon by the
current.
A direct sequence of the stimulant and tonic effects of the electric
bath is its
SEDATIVE INFLUENCE.
This sedative effect, whereof the hypnotic effect already spoken of is
the supreme manifestation, must not be associated for a moment with any
idea of depression, for here we have none such. In addition to what I
have already said in endeavoring to account for the hypnotic influence
of the baths, I refer the reader for further information to the
admirable and lucid remarks on this subject by BEARD and ROCKWELL.[8]
The _galvanic_ bath shares with other galvanic applications made in the
cranial and upper spinal region, the effect of producing the galvanic
_taste_, as also the _flashes_ when the current is interrupted, showing
that the
CRANIAL NERVES
come within the sphere of its influence.
A further effect peculiar to the galvanic bath is a sense of
ITCHING,
felt chiefly in the lower extremities and about the neck, and
proportioned to the intensity of the current. Rather pleasant when mild
or medium currents are used, under the influence of strong currents it
may become so intense as to create an irresistible desire on the part of
the bather to scratch especially the legs.
A negative effect of the galvanic bath, even where very intense currents
are used, is the
ABSOLUTE FREEDOM FROM PAIN
throughout the entire process. I wish this to be understood of course
as holding good only when currents within the ordinary limits of
intensity are e
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