Hysterical Strength - Examples

Examples

The most common anecdotal examples are of mothers lifting automobiles to rescue their children, and when people are in life and death situations. Hysterical strength can result in torn muscles and damaged joints. This, in addition to high lactic acid production, is why the body limits the number of muscle fibers the human body uses.

• In 1982, in Lawrenceville, Georgia, Tony Cavallo was repairing a 1964 Chevrolet Impala automobile from underneath. The vehicle was propped up with jacks, but it fell. Cavallo's mother, Mrs. Angela Cavallo, lifted the car high enough and long enough for two neighbours to replace the jacks and pull Tony from beneath the car.

• In 2006, in Nunavik, Canada, Lydia Angiyou, 41, fought a polar bear long enough for hunters to arrive, and saved her 7 year old son, and two other children.

• In 2006, in Tucson, Arizona, Tim Boyle watched as a Chevrolet Camaro hit 18-year-old Kyle Holtrust. The car pinned Holtrust, still alive, underneath. Boyle lifted the Camaro off the teenager, while the driver of the car pulled the teen to safety.

• In 2009, in Ottawa, Kansas, 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m), 185 lb (84 kg) Nick Harris lifted a Mercury sedan to help a 6 year old girl pinned beneath.

• In 2011, in Tampa, Florida, 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m), 295 lb (134 kg) college football player Danous Estenor lifted a 3,500 lb (1,600 kg) car off of a man who had been caught underneath. The man was a tow truck driver who had been pinned under the rear tire of a 1990 Cadillac Seville, which had lurched forward as he worked underneath it. The man suffered only minor injuries.
• In 2012, in Glen Allen, Virginia, 22 year old Lauren Kornacki rescued her father, Alec Kornacki, after the jack used to prop up his BMW slipped, pinning him under it. Lauren lifted the car, then performed CPR on her father and saved his life.