For twenty years, the “resignation syndrome”, or “Uppgivenhetsyndrom”, has been raging in Sweden.
- The resignation syndrome exists only in Sweden and only among refugee children, mainly from Roma and Uyghur communities.
- More than 400 children sank into a coma between 2000 and 2005. The syndrome of resignation results first in apathy then in a more or less long coma.
- Long considered an imaginary disease, the resignation syndrome is now recognized by the scientific community.
It’s a real medical mystery. The resignation syndrome, recently highlighted in the New Yorker by journalist Rachel Aviv, exists only in Sweden and only among refugee children. When their asylum application is not granted or pending, they slip into a coma.
He just wanted to close his eyes
Georgi, the son of Russian immigrants, felt left in a lethargic state after reading a letter of refusal from the asylum office to his parents. “He says his body began to liquefy, his limbs became soft and porous. He just wanted to close his eyes. Even swallowing his saliva required an effort that he wasn’t sure he could do. He felt significant pressure inside his head and ears. In the morning, he refused to get out of bed and eat. Her brother Savl tried to spoon Coke on her, but the soda ran down her chin.”says the journalist of the New Yorker. Georgi finally came out of his apathy after more than nine months in a coma, weeks after his parents were granted a permanent visa.
“The opinion of the medical community is that this disease is a reaction to two traumas: the harassment in the country of birth of the child, and the dread, after having acclimatized to Sweden, of having to to return”, summarizes Rachel Aviv. “According to a document published by the Swedish Board of Health and Welfare, the patient will recover his health only by receiving permission for permanent residence in Sweden”notes the journalist.
More than 400 children have slipped into a coma
Young people affected by the resignation syndrome are generally between 8 and 15 years old, and come mostly from Roma or Uyghur communities. More than 400 children fell into comas between 2000 and 2005.
Long considered an imaginary disease, the resignation syndrome is now recognized by the scientific community. “What has been observed in these children is immobility, stupor, limp body, the body does not react to pain, it does not react to stimuli, many stop eating”argues psychiatrist Arash Javanbakht.
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