Nightmare in Bremen
Bremen, Germany: 1954
A psychiatric hospital:
Twenty-one-year-old Thomas continued electroshocking the young woman on the table, and she continued screaming, crying and begging for it to stop. Her suffereing only delighted and encouraged him more, as the young woman continued receiving the electroshocks.
“Stop it, please!” she cried, “I can’t take it anymore!”
Thomas smiled. The young woman had reached her breaking point and the German said, “That’s how we deal with behavioral problems here.”
“You son of a...” she exclaimed and raised her hand to strike him, but Thomas grabbed her arm and pulled it down with full force, causing her to whimper.
“Maybe you need more electroshock treatments,” he said.
“No...no,” the young woman whispered.
“I thought so,” Thomas said, “now I’m going to take you back to your room.”
The young woman, too exhausted to fight, complied and he took her back to her room, then locked the door from the outside.
The young woman staying at the psychiatric hospital only went by the name of Juni. She was 26, from London,England and had been living in Germany since 1945 before being committed there. She had had problems with Thomas on a number of occasions, not just regarding the electroshocks. At other times, he had subdued her not only physically but with shots as well. Once Thomas made her strip naked in front of him and bathe in ice water because she wouldn’t obey him, and once dunked her head in it several times. It was enough to kill a normal human being, but it hadn’t killed her YET.
The Briton was bent on getting revenge, but she would soon learn how far Thomas would go to prove his dominance over her.
Juni had been lying in wait for Thomas; waiting for him to come to her room where SHE would strike like a snake, kill him and escape from her hell. Unfortunately, she didn’t have any weapons with her so Juni was prepared to fight him unarmed. The best thing about it was that Thomas didn’t even know about her planned attack.
A few days later, Thomas came into her room and that’s when she struck. The Briton lunged towards him, knocked him down and put her hands around his throat saying, “I’m going to kill you today you bastard for everything you put me through.” Then she squeezed his throat harder, causing him to slowly lose his breath. Thomas thought that he was at an end until he grabbed her bare arms and dug his fingers into them very hard. Juni yelled in pain and loosened her grip on his throat. When Thomas was free, he took advantage of the situation and grabbed Juni by the hair, holding on tight.
“Who’s got who now?", he asked.
She didn’t say anything but was fearful.
“Answer my question,” Thomas said, pulling her hair harder.
“You do,” she gasped.
“That’s right,” Thomas said, “and now I need to punish you severely.”
The look in her eyes was fearful as he led her out of the room by the hair and to a closet. Thomas opened the closet and there hanging on some hooks were restrainers. He took one and tied it around her wrists and ankles so that she couldn’t move. It wasn’t hard for him to do it, because he had overpowered her before. On the other hand, Juni wasn’t putting up much of a struggle.
“So this is where it ends?", Juni coldly asked.
“No,” he said, “I tied you up for a reason. Not only can I physically restrain you, but now I have the chance to control you mentally as well.”
“How?", Juni asked.
“Hypnosis,” Thomas said, “and once I have control of your mind, you will obey me.”
Juni spit in his face, which only amused him.
“I hope you enjoyed that, because that’s the last time you’ll ever do that. Now it’s my turn to play,” he said.
“What do you mean?", she asked.
“This,” he said, and pushed her into the closet. Juni hit the ground with a thud and couldn’t get up. This time, she was truly helpless and Thomas had her right where he wanted her.
This time, she was very afraid.
Thomas kept the closet door open and began the induction:
“You’re only hearing the sound of my voice. Now relax, relax. Relax...you feel how tired you’re getting..so tired.
Relax. You’re feeling so tired...so tired and sleepy...so tired and sleepy. You’re getting tired...so tired...so sleepy. You’re getting so tired...so tired...so sleepy. You’re getting so tired..so tired...sink into a relaxing sleep...a deep hypnotic sleep...a relaxing, deep hypnotic sleep. Focus only on my voice and relax.”
She started relaxing and he continued, “You’re getting relaxed and tired...always more tired. As you continue concentrating on my voice, you become more tired and sleepier. You’re getting more tired and sleepy...listen only to my voice..you would like to sleep...deep sleep..sinking into a deep hypnotic sleep.”
Thomas could see that Juni was trying to resist the hypnosis and he said, “Don’t fight against it. You are getting tired...always tired...feel how tired my voice is making you...always more tired and sleepier.”
She struggled to stay awake and free herself but he said, “Don’t stay awake...close your eyes and sink deeply under my control...you are so tired and sleepy, you would like to sleep...so deep sleep. Your eyelids are much too heavy to hold open... you are tired...so tired...you sink always deeper into a hypnotic sleep...very deep and relaxing...you sink always deeper and deeper. Close your eyes. Sink into the deep hypnotic sleep. This deep sleep...good deep sleep...you are so tired...and sleepy...you would like to sleep. You hear only my voice...just only my voice and you obey me completely. You must sleep for me and do everything which I tell you.”
“Everything which you tell me,” Juni sleepily said.
Thomas came closer to her and whispered in her ear, “Close your eyes now.”
Juni closed her eyes and he softly said, “You are finally in a deep hypnotic sleep and do everything which I tell you. You are completely under my control.”
She just slept deeply, sprawled across the floor.
“Open your eyes but remain asleep,” Thomas said.
Juni obeyed and then he said, “I’m going to relaese the straps, but you will still be under my control.”
“Yes Thomas,” she said.
“Very good,” Thomas said.
After releasing the straps, he carried her to her room and a few minutes later Thomas undressed, did the same to her, and they went to the bed where he raped her.
Bremen, Germany: 2003
The psychiatric hospital had been turned into psychiatry museum. Inside glass displays were objects that were formerly used by the hospital, such as restrainers and tranquilizers. The restraining closet had been opened and closed by many people and even the restrainers had been held and “tried on” by people before being put back into the closet.
The female museum guide, “These restrainers were used to hold the most violent patients, one patient in particular.”
“Who?", a woman asked.
“A woman named Juni in 1954.”
“Wasn’t that kind of cruel?", a man asked.
“Not if you look at her 1954 hospital record. Of course, that isn’t available for public viewing, but it reads like a rap sheet. Incidentally, her hospital record is written in German.”
Unbeknownst to everyone, Juni was in the tour group listening to everything. She was interested in retrieving her old hospital record but unfortunately, she didn’t speak German so she hoped that someone would be able to translate it for her when she had the chance to obtain it.
After the tour, she privately asked the guide, “Do you know where I can find the director of this museum?”
“Certainly,” the guide said, “his office is just down the hall to your left.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Have a nice day,” the guide said.
“I will.”
Juni walked down the hall and found the director’s office. She knocked and in a few minutes, a portly, middle-aged man opened the door.
“Yes, can I help you?", he asked.
“Of course. I’d like to speak with you,” Juni said.
“Well please, come in,” the director said.
After she came in and sat down Juni said, “I’d like to talk to you about viewing a hospital document.”
“I’m sorry Frau, but those are not available for public viewing.”
“I understand, but this is a speical case. My name is Juni and I was a patient here in 1954.”
“You know, I get that a lot. I have a lot of old German women coming to my office claiming to be Juni, but then they can’t verify it so I don’t hand over the records.”
“Oh, but I am and I have some ID to prove it. Here, take a look,” she said and pulled it out of her purse.
The director took the ID, then took out the hospital record to check it. His eyes widened and he said, “You’re telling the truth. You really were a patient here! In fact, my father is the one who wrote this report.”
“Was your father’s name Thomas?”
“Yes.”
“Sir, since this report is in German, could you please translate it for me?” , Juni asked.
“Yes, of course. It says that you had tried to kill my father at one point, but eventually he had you restrained and pushed you into a closet.”
“I was hypnotized in that closet and raped in another room.”
The director looked at the report and said, “Well it doesn’t say that here.”
“I guess your father didn’t want that known,” Juni said.
“I suppose not,” the director said, amazed. Reading on, he said, “It also says here that you had electroshock and ice water treatments, as well as shots to subdue you. You also spit in his face.”
“Yes, that’s all true,” Juni said, “Incidentally, Thomas made me strip naked and bathe in ice water, and dunked my head into it several times because I wouldn’t obey him. He calls that a treatment?”
“Unfortunately yes,” the director said, “by the way, would you care to hear more?”
“No, I’ve heard enough-thank you,” Juni said, “but I would like to ask that this information remain private.”
“Of course, Juni,” the director said, “and as our way of apologizing to you, we would like to compensate you for the rape. Just give me your address and you’ll be receiving a check from us within a matter of time.”
“Thank you sir,” Juni said, “that really means a lot to me.” Then she wrote down her address.
“You’re welcome,” the director said. They shook hands and he warmly said, “I hope you have a nice day.”
“You too,” Juni said. Then she left the office.
Soon she would be a rich woman.