Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:

Medically, 'shock' is usually an intensive care type problem; fainting
or hyperventilating after seeing some dreadful event is not.

Thank you for the explanation. I've always been under the (wrong) impression
that "having a shock" (at a large gas bill, e.g.) was a synonym for being
"in shock". I thought that all this business about people being "taken
to hospital for shock" was some sort of medical euphemism for "taking them
to a sanatorium for some sort of emotional upset".

I had no idea that "shock" was a specific medical condition.

Richard [in PE12]