Mary Todd Lincoln’s Behavior Baffled America – But A Scientist Explained Why She Was So Bizarre

Mary Todd Lincoln was apparently a little wild in her day. It’s said, for instance, that she spent money frivolously. If the history books are to be believed, she also went through moody episodes that sometimes ended in public outbursts. Not the conduct we expect from a first lady! But one man says he understands why Mary was so eccentric. And according to him, her bizarre, often alienating behavior had nothing to do with a bad attitude.

During Mary’s time, no one could quite understand why she behaved that way. Sadly, she also suffered from depressive episodes and violent mood swings, and these bouts of ill health may have led some to call her insane. Mary’s eldest son, Robert, even had her institutionalized later in life.

Since then, experts have considered exactly what caused Mary’s unhappiness. In particular, they have wondered if her physical symptoms – including pale skin and intense headaches – had something to do with it all. But Soros thinks he has the answer. And his theory links all of the first lady’s issues to a single diagnosis.

While in her native Lexington, Kentucky, Mary had an idyllic childhood – at least, at first. Her mother, Eliza, cared for her children, while her father, Robert, provided well for the family by running a local shop. But the birth of sixth child George was too much for Eliza’s body. And while doctors came to the Todd household, they couldn’t do anything to help. Mary’s mother died in 1825 at just 31 years old.

Even though she was just six years old at the time, Mary felt completely devastated by the loss of her beloved mother. Making matters worse, her father became engaged to a woman named Elizabeth “Betsey” Humphreys within six months of Eliza’s death. And, sadly, Betsey apparently had no interest in helping to raise Mary and the other kids.