10 Facts You Might Not Know About Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud's Famous Couch.

Madame Benvenisti, one of Freud's patients, sent the psychoanalyst a couch as a way of expressing her gratitude. This couch featured a Persian throw rug where patients lie down while under hypnosis and in a trance state.

The iconic image of a patient reclining on a couch while sharing their thoughts and feelings with a psychoanalyst has become synonymous with Freudian psychoanalysis. Freud pioneered the use of the couch in his therapy sessions to encourage patients to relax and freely associate their thoughts without the distraction of face-to-face interaction.

He had a serious addiction to cigar that resulted to oral cancer.

For a number of years, Freud struggled with addiction to cigar. He was a heavy smoker, and this was the primary contributor of his battle with a serious illness. During his final years, he was diagnosed with oral cancer, which had gone to the point that it was no longer operable. After constant excruciating pains brought about by this disease, Freud requested his doctor to give him fatal doses of morphine to end his struggle. Three separate doses of this drug was administered on Freud, which resulted to his death on September 23, 1939.

The Oedipus Complex and His Own Family.

One of Freud's most famous concepts is the Oedipus complex, which explores a child's feelings of desire for his mother and rivalry with his father. Interestingly, Freud acknowledged that his own family dynamics played a role in shaping this theory. Freud had six children, and his relationship with his wife, Martha, as well as his observations of his own family, influenced his understanding of the complex interplay of familial relationships.

Freud decided to become a doctor for practical reasons.

Freud became engaged to Martha Bernays when he was 26 years old. However, he was struggling financially during that time since his job at a science lab did not suffice in supporting his family. As a result, he decided to abandon his career as a scientist and pursued a job as a medical doctor. He sacrificed the painful experience of being apart from Martha temporarily, so he could obtain professional training in medicine that equipped him with credentials to become a doctor.

Freud was addicted to cocaine.

Earlier in the 20th century, cocaine's harmful effects were still undiscovered. In fact, it was used as a euphoric and analgesic, and it was often found in throat lozenges and soda pop. Freud was particularly interested in cocaine's ability to ease depression, and he even advocated the use of this drug for numerous purposes. Unfortunately, his career as a doctor suffered after cocaine's harmful effects and addictive properties were revealed.

Freud considered himself as the favorite child of his mother.

Freud's mother fondly called him "golden Siggie", which made him feel his mother's greater love for him, as compared to to the affection his siblings got. According to him, this special favor he received from his mother gave rise to his optimism and self-reliance.

During the last 16 years of Freud's life, he had 33 more surgeries due to cancer.

Freud thought of cigar smoking as a habit that enhanced his creative skills. Unfortunately, this resulted to the formation of a cancerous tumor in his mouth, which required a removal of a huge portion of his jaw. There were also 33 additional surgeries that took place during Freud's final years, yet he never stopped smoking.

Cocaine Advocate.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Freud was an enthusiastic advocate for the use of cocaine. He believed that the substance could be a panacea for various ailments, including depression and anxiety. Freud even wrote a positive essay titled "On Coca," where he praised the therapeutic benefits of cocaine. However, as the negative effects of the drug became apparent, Freud distanced himself from his earlier endorsement.

Freud studied the sexual organs of eels.

When Freud was at the University of Vienna, he had to take up zoology as a part of his course. He dissected eels to find the gonads of the males, but his efforts were to no avail. This part of the research study was during his trip to Trieste.

His written work, "The Interpretation of Dreams" was hardly a success during the initial publication.

Although Freud thought of his written work as quite significant, a total of 351 copies were sold within the first 6 years. It was first published in 1899, and its second edition was only released in 1909.

Freud's death may have been a physician-assisted suicide.

By the summer of 1939, Freud was frail and suffering intense pain from terminal, inoperable mouth cancer. On September 21, 1939, Freud grasped the hand of his friend and doctor, Max Schur, and reminded him of his earlier pledge not to "torment me unnecessarily." He added, "Now it is nothing but torture and makes no sense." After receiving the permission of Freud's daughter, Anna, Schur injected the first of three heavy morphine doses. Freud slipped into a coma and never awoke.