Hysterical strength

Hysterical strength is a display of extreme strength by humans, beyond what is believed to be normal, usually occurring when people are in life-and-death situations. Common anecdotal examples include parents lifting vehicles to rescue their children. The extra strength is commonly attributed to increased adrenaline production, though supporting evidence is scarce, and inconclusive when available; research into the phenomenon is difficult, though it is thought that it is theoretically possible.[1]

Extreme strength may occur during excited delirium.[2][3]

Examples

The most common anecdotal examples are of parents lifting vehicles to rescue their children, and when people are in life-and-death situations. Hysterical strength can result in torn muscles due to higher mechanical stress.

  • before May 1962, Jack Kirby claims he saw a woman lift a car off her baby, which inspired him to create the Hulk.[4][5][6]
  • In 1982, in Lawrenceville, Georgia, Tony Cavallo was repairing a 1964 Chevrolet Impala automobile from underneath. The vehicle was propped up with jacks, but it fell. Cavallo's mother, Mrs. Angela Cavallo, lifted the car high enough and long enough for two neighbours to replace the jacks and pull Tony from beneath the car.[7]
  • In 2006, Ivujivik, Quebec, resident Lydia Angiyou saved several children by fighting a polar bear until a local hunter shot it.[8]
  • In 2006, in Tucson, Arizona, Tom Boyle watched as a Chevrolet Camaro hit 18-year-old Kyle Holtrust. The car pinned Holtrust, still alive, underneath. Boyle lifted the Camaro off the teenager, while the driver of the car pulled the teen to safety.[7][9]
  • In 2009, in Ottawa, Kansas, 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in), 84 kg (185 lb) Nick Harris lifted a Mercury sedan to help a 6-year-old girl pinned beneath.[10]
  • In 2009, in Newport, Wales, Donna McNamee, Abigail Sicolo, and Anthony McNamee lifted a 1.1 ton Renault Clio off of an 8-year-old boy.[11]
  • In 2011, in Tampa, Florida, 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in), 134 kg (295 lb) University of South Florida college football player Danous Estenor lifted a 1,600 kg (3,500 lb) car off of a man who had been caught underneath. The man was a tow truck driver who had been pinned under the rear tire of a 1990 Cadillac Seville, which had lurched forward as he worked underneath it. The man suffered only minor injuries.[12]
  • In 2012, in Glen Allen, Virginia, 22-year-old Lauren Kornacki rescued her father, Alec Kornacki, after the jack used to prop up his BMW slipped, pinning him under it. Lauren lifted the car, then performed CPR on her father and saved his life.[13]
  • In 2012, in Michigan, Austin Smith (age 15) lifted a car to save his grandfather pinned underneath [14][15]
  • In 2013, in Oregon, teenage sisters Hannah (age 16) and Haylee (age 14) lifted a tractor to save their father pinned underneath.[16]
  • In 2013, in Salvage, Newfoundland and Labrador, Cecil Stuckless, a 72 year old man lifted a Jeep to save his son-in-law pinned underneath [17][18]
  • In 2015, in St. John's, Newfoundland, Nick Williams lifted a four-wheel-drive vehicle to save a young boy pinned beneath its tire.[19]
  • In 2015, in Vienna, Virginia, Charlotte Heffelmire lifted a GMC pick-up truck to free her father from underneath.[20]
  • In 2017, in Temple Terrace, Florida, Kenny Franklin, lifted an SUV from a state trooper after an accident [21][22]
  • In 2017, professional wrestler Braun Strowman lifted an ambulance when assaulting Roman Reigns.
  • In 2019, in Ohio, Zac Clark a 16 year old football player, lifted a 3,000 lb car when he heard his neighbor call for help.[23][24]

Research

Early experiments showed that adrenaline increases twitch, but not tetanic force and rate of force development in muscles.[25] It is questionable, however, as to whether adrenaline, released from the adrenal medulla into the venous circulation, can reach the muscle quickly enough in order to be able to cause such an effect in the midst of a crisis. It may be that noradrenaline released from sympathetic nerve terminals directly innervating skeletal muscle[26] has more of an effect over the timescale of seconds.

Amphetamine and other stimulants are used by some athletes for their psychological and performance-enhancing effects.[27][28] In competitive sports, this form of use is prohibited by anti-doping regulations.[27] In healthy people at oral therapeutic doses, amphetamine has been shown to increase physical strength,[27][29] acceleration,[27][29] stamina,[27][30] and endurance,[27][30] while reducing reaction time.[27] Amphetamine exerts its effects in humans primarily as a releasing agent of dopamine and norepinephrine in the central nervous system, and secondarily via inhibition of reuptake of noradrenaline and dopamine, similar to methylphenidate and bupropion.[29][30]

See also

References

  1. Ransom Riggs (25 March 2011). "Does Hysterical Strength Really Exist?". mentalfloss.com.
  2. "White Paper Report on Excited Delirium Syndrome" Archived October 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, ACEP Excited Delirium Task Force, American College of Emergency Physicians, September 10, 2009
  3. Sztajnkrycer, Matt D.; Baez, Amado A. "Cocaine, Excited Delirium and Sudden Unexpected Death" (PDF). Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  4. Hill, Dave (July 17, 2003). "Green with anger". The Guardian. London, United Kingdom. Archived from the original on May 5, 2013. one of the Hulk comic books' artists, Jack Kirby, has said he was inspired by seeing a woman rescue her child from beneath a trapped car.
  5. Groth, Gary (23 May 2011). "Jack Kirby Interview - Part 6". The Comics Journal. KIRBY: The Hulk I created when I saw a woman lift a car. Her baby was caught under the running board of this car. The little child was playing in the gutter and he was crawling from the gutter onto the sidewalk under the running board of this car — he was playing in the gutter. His mother was horrified. She looked from the rear window of the car, and this woman in desperation lifted the rear end of the car. From The Comics Journal #134 (February 1990)
  6. Lipstak, Andrew (30 August 2015). "The Incredible Hulk Was Inspired By A Woman Saving Her Baby". Gizmodo. Jack Kirby witnessed a woman lift a car to get her child out from under it. The moment helped inspire one of his most famous creations: the Incredible Hulk.
  7. Clark, Josh. "How can adrenaline help you lift a 3,500-pound car?", 11 December 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. Retrieved 13 November 2008.
  8. Jane George (2006-02-17). "Polar bear no match for fearsome mother in Ivujivik". Nunatsiaq News / Nortext Publishing Corporation (Iqaluit). Retrieved 2009-01-01.
  9. Huicochea, Alexis. "Man lifts car off pinned cyclist", Arizona Daily Star, 28 July 2006. Retrieved 21 November 2010.
  10. Associated Press. "Kansas dad somehow lifts car off 6-year-old girl", 18 December 2009. news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
  11. "Neighbours help lift car off boy". 2009-06-04. Retrieved 2018-10-20.
  12. Greg Auman (2011-06-24). "USF Bulls offensive lineman Danous Estenor lifts car to free trapped man". St. Petersburg Times (Tampa Bay, FL).
  13. Newcomb, Alyssa (August 2012). "Superhero Woman Lifts Car Off Dad - ABC News". ABC News. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  14. https://abcnews.go.com/US/video/michigan-teen-lifts-car-off-trapped-grandfather-15774359
  15. https://www.deseret.com/2012/3/4/20397528/boy-s-strength-muscles-car-off-grandpa-saves-life
  16. "Oregon man pinned under 3,000-pound tractor saved by teen daughters". Fox News. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  17. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/72-year-old-n-l-superman-lifts-suv-off-son-in-law-1.1320549
  18. https://www.npr.org/2013/07/22/204444515/septuagenarian-superhero-man-lifts-car-off-son-in-law
  19. "Shea Heights hero finds strength to lift vehicle off injured boy". CBC News. 28 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  20. McCrum, Kirstie (11 January 2016). "Teen girl uses 'superhuman strength' to lift burning truck off dad and save family". Mirror. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  21. https://www.policemag.com/365919/fl-man-lifts-car-off-of-pinned-state-trooper
  22. https://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/accidents/passenger-lifts-suv-rescues-florida-trooper-after-uber-driver-has-medical/2328974/
  23. "Ohio high school football player lifts car to save neighbor's life".
  24. "This 16-year-old football player lifted a car to save his trapped neighbor".
  25. Hoh, JF; Rossmanith, GH; Kwan, LJ; Hamilton, AM (1988). "Adrenaline increases the rate of cycling of crossbridges in rat cardiac muscle as measured by pseudo-random binary noise-modulated perturbation analysis". Circulation Research. 62 (3): 452–461. doi:10.1161/01.RES.62.3.452.
  26. Grassi, C; Passatore, M (February 1988). "Action of the sympathetic system on skeletal muscle". Italian Journal of Neurological Sciences. 9 (1): 23–8. PMID 2965685.
  27. Liddle DG, Connor DJ (June 2013). "Nutritional supplements and ergogenic AIDS". Prim. Care. 40 (2): 487–505. doi:10.1016/j.pop.2013.02.009. PMID 23668655. Amphetamines and caffeine are stimulants that increase alertness, improve focus, decrease reaction time, and delay fatigue, allowing for an increased intensity and duration of training ...
    Physiologic and performance effects
      Amphetamines increase dopamine/norepinephrine release and inhibit their reuptake, leading to central nervous system (CNS) stimulation
      Amphetamines seem to enhance athletic performance in anaerobic conditions 39 40
      Improved reaction time
      Increased muscle strength and delayed muscle fatigue
      Increased acceleration
      Increased alertness and attention to task
  28. Bracken NM (January 2012). "National Study of Substance Use Trends Among NCAA College Student-Athletes" (PDF). NCAA Publications. National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  29. Parr JW (July 2011). "Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and the athlete: new advances and understanding". Clin Sports Med. 30 (3): 591–610. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2011.03.007. PMID 21658550.
  30. Roelands B, de Koning J, Foster C, Hettinga F, Meeusen R (May 2013). "Neurophysiological determinants of theoretical concepts and mechanisms involved in pacing". Sports Med. 43 (5): 301–311. doi:10.1007/s40279-013-0030-4. PMID 23456493.
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