Cabin fever

Cabin fever

Cabin fever is a slang term for a claustrophobic reaction that takes place when a person or group is isolated and/or shut in, for an extended period. Symptoms include restlessness, irritability, forgetfulness, and excessive sleeping.cite episode|title=Alaska Special|episodelink=MythBusters_%28season_6%29#Episode_101_-_Alaska_Special|series=Mythbusters|serieslink=Mythbusters|airdate=2008-04-23]

The origin of the term is unknown, but was first recorded in 1918.cite web|accessdate=2008-04-25|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=cabin|title=The Online Etymology Dictionary] The term may originate from the United States during the time when settlers would be snowed into their log cabins in winter and would have to wait for the spring thaw in order to travel to town. [cite web|accessdate=2008-02-28|url=http://www.mail-archive.com/japanese_language%40yahoogroups.com/msg00215.html|title=Re:What is "Cabin Fever" in Nihon-go".] The phrase may also be associated with ocean-crossing sailing ships in which passengers had to endure weeks and months of slow travel while living in cabins below deck.Fact|date=April 2008

On an episode of Mythbusters, the hosts attempted to "bust" the myth of cabin fever, isolating themselves for a period of time in the Alaskan winter while being observed and taking cognitive and stress tests. The test results were unusable due to incorrect testing procedures; however, one host, Adam Savage, exhibited all four of the symptoms of cabin fever they were looking for, while the other, Jamie Hyneman, only exhibited one (excessive sleep). They deemed the myth "plausible."

Many stories are based around this idea of a small group of people getting restless and irritable from being in a confined space. One of the most famous stories about cabin fever is Stephen King's "The Shining" which involves a family of three trapped in an isolated resort in the dead of winter. Cabin fever stories may also involve a person or group of people on a deserted island or on a long space voyage.

ee also

*Claustrophobia
*"The Shining"

References


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Cabin Fever — Données clés Réalisation Eli Roth Scénario Eli Roth Randy Pearlstein Acteurs principaux Rider Strong Jordan Ladd James DeBello Cerina Vincent Joey Kern Jeff Hoffman Pays d’origine …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Cabin fever — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Cabin Fever puede referirse a: Cabin Fever (2003), película de Eli Roth; Cabin Fever (2008), episodio (4x11) de la serie de Lost. Obtenido de Cabin fever Categoría: Wikipedia:Desambiguación …   Wikipedia Español

  • cabin fever — cabin .fever n [U] informal when you feel upset and impatient because you have not been outside for a long time …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • cabin fever — cabin ,fever noun uncount the impatient or annoyed feeling you get when you have not been outside for a long time …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • cabin fever — [n] claustrophobia climbing the walls*, distress, neurosis, restlessness, SAD, seasonal affective disorder, temporary insanity, winter blues; concepts 410,657,748 …   New thesaurus

  • cabin fever — ☆ cabin fever n. a condition of increased anxiety, tension, boredom, etc. caused by living for some time in a confined space or an isolated area, esp. in winter …   English World dictionary

  • Cabin Fever — Filmdaten Deutscher Titel Cabin Fever Produktionsland USA …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • cabin fever — noun : extreme irritability and combativeness resulting from the boredom of living in a remote region alone or with only a few companions * * * noun [noncount] : an unhappy and impatient feeling that comes from being indoors for too long She… …   Useful english dictionary

  • cabin fever — noun A condition that produces restlessness and irritability caused from being in a confined space. Some residents of Alaska suffer from cabin fever when they remain indoors throughout the long, snowy winters …   Wiktionary

  • cabin fever — feeling depressed because you have to stay inside    After three weeks of cold weather we all had cabin fever …   English idioms

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