During the summer of 1881, Vincent Van Gogh asked for his cousin's hand and his request was refused. He insisted very much on seeing her and acted by holding his hand in a flame and brandishing the words "Let me see her as long as I can keep my hand in the flame" (Wikipedia, Letter 193 from Vincent to Théo, The Hague, May 14, 1882). In 1885, Vincent's father died (ArtBook: Van Gogh; A Profound and Tormented Genius – His Life in Paintings, 1998). In December 1888, Vincent Van Gogh was living with a fellow artist and friend, Paul Gauguin. They lived in the “Yellow House”; the house that Vincent had rented and of which he had painted a picture in September of the same year. On December 23, Van Gogh approached Gauguin with a razor blade, then left the Yellow House in a panic and fled to a local brothel. This led Vincent to cut off part of his ear, which he then gave to a prostitute (Wikipedia, Rita Wildegans, 2007). Vincent spent 3 days unconscious in the hospital after that night and was released home on January 7, 1889 (Jen Green, 2002). In January and February, Vincent was often in the hospital due to his hallucinations and paranoia. He thought someone had poisoned him. In March, the police closed his house after a petition was signed by some residents, and then he was admitted to the Arles municipal hospital (New World Encyclopedia, 2008). Vincent once reported to his brother Théo that looking at his face in a mirror calmed him. In April, Vincent's brother Theo got married and Vincent began to feel like a burden to him (Jen Green, 2002). In May 1889, Vincent agreed to return to hospitalization at the Saint-Rémy asylum. He reported during his time there that painting soothed and healed his mind...... middle of paper...... I know how he felt at all times in his life. I don't know if there were many psychiatrists and therapists in his time, but when researching him, it seemed like he was in contact with at least two doctors in his life who helped him resolve his psychological problems. So if Vincent Van Gogh were alive today, I would still ask him to talk to doctors or a psychiatrist he is comfortable with. I don't know what types of treatments were available to anyone in the late 1800s, but today I would see if Vincent was alive. interested in taking a combination of mood stabilizers and antidepressants to relieve his manic and depressive episodes. The manual states that their use in combination with each other may also “reduce the risk of future depressive episodes, just as they appear to prevent the return of manic episodes” (Comer, 2011 p.. 224).