"Hi Donna, Sorry to bother you on a Friday night, but Mr. Jones is freaking out. He is wandering into other people's rooms, and hollering about finding his platoon . I have already given him a milligram of Ativan, but it hasn't slowed him down. Not to mention, Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Brown almost having a knock down-drag out over her blue sweater, and Joe Davis hasn't stopped yelling all night. I'm losing it here. Help!"
"Debbie, have you looked outside tonight? Its a full moon. Take my word for it, its going to get worse before it gets better."
Ask any person who works with Dementia patients and they can attest that Dementia gets worse when the moon is full. It is known as the "Transylvania Effect" or "Lunar Effect", and has been documented for centuries. While there are no definitive studies which validate the phenomena, the Lunar Effect has been believed for eons.
"It is the very error of the moon", said Othello, "she comes more nearer earth than she wont, and makes men mad." Othello. Shakespeare.
The Moon affects the tides, thus, why not the human body, which is 80% water?
The link between the Moon and madness was acknowledged in the 1600s by Sir William Hale He wrote: "The Moon has great influence in all diseases of the brain, especially dementia." The Lunacy Act of 1842( England) was built on this logic.
As late as 1940, a murder defense was based on "moon Madness".
Just this year, the British resort town o Brighton ,
adapted a policy of deploying extra policemen when the moon is full.
Is there a correlation between the Moon's phases and our behaviors? It is debatable, depending on who's studies you read. One tends to cancel out the next.
In a study done at the University of Florida ,fifteen years of murder cases,1887 of them, were analyzed to determine the lunar phase of each occurrence. It was determined, that the incidence, or frequency of the murders corresponded directly with the waxing or waning of the Moon. In other words, as the Moon became fuller, the incidences rose, and fell as it waned.
In the recent scientific paper, "The Lunar Cycle: Effects On Human And Animal Behavior And Physiology", Professor Michal Zimecki of the Polish Academy of Sciences has analyzed dozens of studies that take lunar activity into account, and argues that a full moon could affect criminal activity and our health, causing an escalation in crime and admissions to hospital to surge.
There are also countless studies which refute the above.
Personally, I am a believer. I have seen it for too many years, in my own Dementia patients.
http://www.angelfire.com/moon/lunareffect/
http://www.mdx.ac.uk/WWW/STUDY/4.htm#4.3
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Comments: 37
Sure, but the full moon doesn't have any greater effect on the tides than any other phase.
If there are no "definitive studies," what do you mean it "has been documented for centuries."
I'm not trying to give you a hard time. I'm perfectly willing to accept a lunar effect, but not on anecdotal evidence alone.
Charles Thiesen - Although definitive studies are a form of documentation, they are not the only form of documentation. Science and lay communities have been documenting observations since the dawn of writing, definitive studies require in-depth analysis and proving correlations; or the lack thereof (so I understand).
Anecdotal evidence is all there is. As I stated in the article, each study pretty much cancels each other out. All I know for sure comes from my own personal experiences.
The Moon's effect on the psyche HAS been documented for years. For example, 5:8 of Son of Sam's murders occurred during a full moon, as well as all of the "Zodiac" killings. Charles Manson used lunar phases to determine the timing of his followers rampages. Need I say more?
Just what kind of phone calls are you getting?
Jessie,
Thanks, I just know what I have personally seen, and read.
Heather,
Be glad she doesn't work on a Psych ward!
Bill,
Thanks, love.
Darn, and here I was thinking you were getting all those heavy breathers...lol
I don't think the brightness is much of a factor, as most homes, both private and institutional, have drapes on the windows.
Up here, we also have "weather lunatics" -- people who will go out into the worst weather, at the craziest hours, to buy something that surely could have waited for a more sensible window of opportunity.
It seems that most properly constructed studies fail to show any statistically significant increase in odd behaviors during the full moon. Straight Dope
I am one of those "weather lunatics"..as I adore incliment weather, and will use any little excuse to walk in it, even if it is to walk to the corner store for something i really don't need.
Aniko,
If you read the report at U of F, they found that violent crime did in fact, increase with the Moon's waxing, and decreased at the waning.. What do you consider a "properly constructed study? As I have stated, none of the data is concrete. There are just as many studies which refute the notion that behavior worsens during the full moon, but I know for a fact that dementia patients worsen when the moon is full, data be damned. I have been a geriatric nurse for 25 years, and it happens.
Thank you for making my case.
Laurie,
Thats interesting. I have never noticed a rise in admissions during a full moon. I wonder if the hospitals are "cleaning house" during those times?
I calls 'em as I sees 'em...I can't vouch for more than that.
The data involved is indeed concrete--the number of incidents of a certain nature reported on a particular day/night. And a properly constructed study is one that examines real-time data, not people's recollections, and applies the right statistical methods (in this case, there's a potential for creating false correlations by defining the "full moon cycle" in whatever way a correlation happens to arise from otherwise completely random variation, as in the case of the German study discussed at the bottom of this article.
I believe the U of F study is the same one challenged by George Abell, but I don't have his book, so I don't know what he says exactly about the statistics.
At the same time, we're talking about many different things. It's possible forthe full moon to have no effect on criminal activity but to make dementia patients get worse. According to the Wikipedia article on "lunar effect", there are more studies showing some relationship for worsening in various pre-existing mental conditions, but then it's also harder to eliminate observer bias in these cases. (The decision the observers make is often subjective, and it's impossible to "blind" them to the variable: the phase of the moon).
I really do not understand why you are insistant that this theory does not exist. I am not an argumentative person, but I know what I know, and when researching this article, I examined numerous studies, and decided to immediately discount the Wiki entry, because it is,well, Wiki, thus, not reliable as a source. Had I wanted to irrefutably make my point, I could have changed their data myself. Is your argument based on the fact that I stated "just as many studies refute the phenomena", and you feel the need to "one up" me? Knock yourself out.
Tell that to Aniko, who thinks I'm full of hooey. Thanks!
I believe it!
But hey, this is the new Gather, so you could just delete my comments and have everyone on the thread agree with you....
(BTW, I quoted Wikipedia on the matter of psych patients, where it agreed with you....)
You are right, my crass comment was uncalled for, and yes, you are entitled to your opinion, just as I am entitled to mine. I think on this topic, we can agree to disagree.
Probably, but I don't know of any studies which "normal" folk were studied. I think Iamy have to log my kitties activities for a couple months, and see if their behavior changes. I'll get back to ya on this.
i don't care what the scholars say..let 'em all check out the freaky goings on in hospitals when the full moon is out.
there is definitely some kind connection...
Tell it, sister
Thanks, my friend.
Happy Birthday