there be monsters… actually, they’re lyssants

there be monsters… actually, they’re lyssants

If, as I proclaim, rabidity is a natural part of human behavior that emerges in a number of situations, then we need a single, general term to refer to a person or animal affected in this way.  I introduce a new word, lyssant, to refer to a person or animal exhibiting rabid behavior, however it is induced.  The word derives from the Greek word, lyssa, which refers to rabies, certain kinds of madness, and is the goddess (daimona, i.e. spirit or demon) of rage, fury, and rabies (ref).  Indeed, the formal name for the rabies virus is Lyssavirus.  The Roman equivalent of Lyssa was variously called Ira, Furor, and Rabies.  Although this narrative will continue to use terms such as rabid, vampire, werewolf, intermittent explosive behavior, road rage and others, all refer to a lyssant, a person or animal exhibiting these behaviors.  This term also allows us to dissociate temporarily our discussion from a second set of symptoms of rabies, the so-called dumb or paralytic form.  Lyssa clearly refers to the rage aspect, i.e., furious rabies, and for now, lyssant does also.

Lyssantic behavior is found throughout psychiatry and clinical psychology.  However, its appearance is fragmented, inserted piecemeal into a wide array of behavioral disorders.  Behaviors that include rage are clustered with Impulse Control Disorders where they are uselessly clumped together with kleptomania and compulsive gambling.  Lyssantic behavior is couched in a variety of terms including Impulse Control Disorder, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Emotional Dysregulation, Impulsive Aggression, and others.  Lyssants and their behaviors are listed among the myriad of symptoms of broader diseases including Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), for example ADHD with Conduct Disorder, and in various subclasses of autism spectrum disorders.  Disorders such as road rage and domestic violence are shunted into corners of Personality Disorders that have no meaningful therapeutic approaches. 

This jumble is clearly the result of a lack of a specific physiological or pharmacological means of categorizing lyssants and their specific set of neuropsychiatric characteristics.  At best it is likened to the temper tantrums of toddlers.  While temper tantrums are surely lyssantic behavior, psychoanalytic analysis of regression to some unconscious psychological trauma is of no use in describing or in treating lyssants.  Given the lack of a specific definition, lyssants are bombarded with anxiolytics, antipsychotics, and antidepressants.  Essentially the full range of psychotherapeutics is thrown at them simply hoping the lyssant will obtain some relief or be controlled.  Maybe also a full dose of sunlight or a stake through the heart for good measure.

By defining a specific term, lyssant, and the behaviors it encompasses, we have the opportunity to untangle this mess.  We can apply the full weight of neuroscience research tools to discover and study the pathways and actions of rabies.  Most usefully, we can discover and study its native target in the central nervous system.  We can already expect this to be successful because our knowledge of the emotional centers of the brain, exemplified by the Papez circuit, are exactly the result of Dr. Papez’s work in determining the avidity of the rabies virus for various regions of the brain.  These regions and their connections are sometimes referred to as the Rage Circuit, and it is in modulating this circuit that we will be able to treat lyssantic behavior gone awry (psychological disorders as well as the actions of mad-men) and to come to understand our own inner vampires and werewolves, that is, come to understand what it means to be a complete human.