nervous prostration
Noun: A state of extreme mental and physical fatigue and debility, typically resulting from prolonged stress, emotional strain, or overwork, which impairs one's ability to function normally.
This term describes a specific medical or psychological condition characterized by complete exhaustion. It is often used in historical or formal contexts to describe a collapse of nervous energy. - After months of caring for her sick parent and managing her job, she suffered a nervous prostration. - The doctor diagnosed his constant fatigue and inability to concentrate as nervous prostration.
- Historical Context: The term "nervous prostration" was commonly used in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In modern medical terminology, similar conditions might be described as nervous exhaustion, burnout, or specific diagnoses like adjustment disorder or major depressive disorder.
- In Victorian literature, characters often succumb to nervous prostration after a great shock.
- Nervous exhaustion (n): A more modern and commonly used phrase with a very similar meaning to nervous prostration, denoting severe fatigue from stress.
- Prostration (n): The state of being physically weak or emotionally overcome. "Nervous" specifies the cause.
- Breakdown (n): A more general, informal term for a sudden collapse in mental health.
- Nervous exhaustion
- Burnout
- Collapse
- Nervous breakdown (informal)
- Vitality
- Robustness
- Energy
- Resilience
While "nervous prostration" specifically denotes a state of being prostrated or laid low by nervous exhaustion, it should not be confused with general tiredness. It implies a debilitating condition that requires rest and recovery, often with an emotional or psychological origin. The term itself is now considered somewhat dated.
- an emotional disorder that leaves you exhausted and unable to work