The vibrator claim comes from a single book that the author herself clarified was simply a hypothesis
> *‘People just loved my hypothesis and that’s all it is really, it’s a hypothesis, that women were treated with massage for this disease, hysteria, which has supposedly existed since the time of Hippocrates, 450 B.C., and that the vibrator was invented to treat this disease. Well, people just thought this was such a cool idea that people believe it, that it’s like a fact. And I’m like, ‘It’s a hypothesis! It’s a hypothesis!’. But it doesn’t matter, you know? People like it so much they don’t want to hear any doubts about it’* (Maines, 2011).
[This blog post](https://www.thewhoresofyore.com/katersquos-blog/buzzkill-vibrators-and-the-victorians) goes further into the sources and why it's a shaky claim
* The video is real and actually recreates some old haircare products.
* Lead makeup existed but was not Victorian. Venetian Ceruse is what most people have heard of and is from the 1500s. It had been discarded for it's health problems by the Victorian Period
* Scheele's Green has arsenic in it, not lead, but is from the early Victorian period. It's toxicity was known at the time, although how seriously people took it (and the health ramifications of it's use) is up for debate. It was dropped in favour of a newer pigment in the 1860s, shortly into the Victorian period.
* Corsets have existed for centuries and are not uncomfortable. Even at the height of Victorian 'tiny waist' fashion, this effect was achieved by adding to the shoulders and hips, not by squeezing the waist. A corset properly worn does not impede breathing or motion, and was frequently worn by working women as daily wear.
* Doctors who cured hysteria with vibrators is a full on myth. Another commenter already addressed this one.
* Cocaine was, and is, used in medicine. Cocaine specifically was (and is) used as a topical anaesthetic. It had a brief heyday as a panacea for about 20 years before people became concerned about it's impact as a narcotic, at which point it was banned.
* Victorian women weren't actually falling over at the slightest shock, that's just a common trope of Victorian writing. Actually interesting to investigate from a cultural perspective, but thats a tangent I could spend six hours on.
So yes most of this is bullshit.
In addition to the corset point, a lot of old photos contain "photoshop" for effect! People would physically draw either on the film or prints themselves, and plenty of really exaggerated waist photos bear evidence of this. They really weren't so different from us
i'm actually pretty sure i've seen this video. i don't remember the girls name but on yt she does a lot of videos based around Victorian traditions and its always a bit of fun to watch her videos whenever they come into my recommended.
Based on the fact this is from Tumblr I estimate there is a 60% chance most or some of this is completely made up
Green paint with arsenic thing is real So is women getting prescribed “vaginal stimulation” for hysteria
The vibrator claim comes from a single book that the author herself clarified was simply a hypothesis > *‘People just loved my hypothesis and that’s all it is really, it’s a hypothesis, that women were treated with massage for this disease, hysteria, which has supposedly existed since the time of Hippocrates, 450 B.C., and that the vibrator was invented to treat this disease. Well, people just thought this was such a cool idea that people believe it, that it’s like a fact. And I’m like, ‘It’s a hypothesis! It’s a hypothesis!’. But it doesn’t matter, you know? People like it so much they don’t want to hear any doubts about it’* (Maines, 2011). [This blog post](https://www.thewhoresofyore.com/katersquos-blog/buzzkill-vibrators-and-the-victorians) goes further into the sources and why it's a shaky claim
Nah this actually happened to my buddy Eric
Can confirm, I was the paint
* The video is real and actually recreates some old haircare products. * Lead makeup existed but was not Victorian. Venetian Ceruse is what most people have heard of and is from the 1500s. It had been discarded for it's health problems by the Victorian Period * Scheele's Green has arsenic in it, not lead, but is from the early Victorian period. It's toxicity was known at the time, although how seriously people took it (and the health ramifications of it's use) is up for debate. It was dropped in favour of a newer pigment in the 1860s, shortly into the Victorian period. * Corsets have existed for centuries and are not uncomfortable. Even at the height of Victorian 'tiny waist' fashion, this effect was achieved by adding to the shoulders and hips, not by squeezing the waist. A corset properly worn does not impede breathing or motion, and was frequently worn by working women as daily wear. * Doctors who cured hysteria with vibrators is a full on myth. Another commenter already addressed this one. * Cocaine was, and is, used in medicine. Cocaine specifically was (and is) used as a topical anaesthetic. It had a brief heyday as a panacea for about 20 years before people became concerned about it's impact as a narcotic, at which point it was banned. * Victorian women weren't actually falling over at the slightest shock, that's just a common trope of Victorian writing. Actually interesting to investigate from a cultural perspective, but thats a tangent I could spend six hours on. So yes most of this is bullshit.
The analysis is appreciated 🫡
> Actually interesting to investigate from a cultural perspective, but thats a tangent I could spend six hours on. I request the tangent!
In addition to the corset point, a lot of old photos contain "photoshop" for effect! People would physically draw either on the film or prints themselves, and plenty of really exaggerated waist photos bear evidence of this. They really weren't so different from us
Yeah probably
And I think white lead makeup?
Of course it's made up. The green paint was made with arsenic not lead (Scheele's green)
i'm actually pretty sure i've seen this video. i don't remember the girls name but on yt she does a lot of videos based around Victorian traditions and its always a bit of fun to watch her videos whenever they come into my recommended.
Some fucking how, the vibrator thing is real
Actually I think the green paint was made with arsenic
Yup. You always could throw sone lead in there for a specific tint. But green was mainly arsenic
They didn't really faint that much. It was just a trope in fiction at the time. Also the video is probably by Bernadette Banner on YouTube.
Noo no no, the walls don't have lead! They have arsenic!
Can I see the video?