Pa'nar Syndrome
Pa'nar Syndrome is a fictional neurological ailment, fatal to Vulcans, and transferred between them via a mind meld. At this time in the Star Trek universe, only a small portion of Vulcans are believed to have the ability to initiate mind melds, and melding by Vulcans is not accepted by Vulcan society in general. People suffering from Pa'nar Syndrome are therefore stigmatized.
T'Pol contracts this relatively rare disease from a member of a rebellious Vulcan sect which had cast aside the rule of logic and experimented with mind melds and emotions. The event is seen in "Fusion," where T'Pol, apparently unaware of the risks, willingly participates in a mind meld initiated by Trolaris, but later resists the process. In "Stigma," she discloses that she was forced to it. In the fourth season episode, "Awakening," T'Pol learns that the condition was in fact caused by an improperly trained melder and, contrary to the public declarations of the Vulcan High Command, it was in fact curable by an experienced mind (in T'Pol's case, a service provided by future Vulcan elder T'Pau).
Read more about this topic: Stigma (Star Trek: Enterprise)
Famous quotes containing the word syndrome:
“Women are taught that their main goal in life is to serve others—first men, and later, children. This prescription leads to enormous problems, for it is supposed to be carried out as if women did not have needs of their own, as if one could serve others without simultaneously attending to one’s own interests and desires. Carried to its “perfection,” it produces the martyr syndrome or the smothering wife and mother.”
—Jean Baker Miller (20th century)