Saint Dymphna was an Irish warlord's daughter. Her mother died when she was a teenager, and her father was very grief-stricken. He searched the entire Western world for a woman to replace his beloved wife, but none could be found. Maddened by grief, he returned, and saw that his daughter was as beautiful as her mother was. She tried to fight off his advances with respect, but eventually realized that there was no way she could put up a fight. She fled to Belgium with Father Gerebran, an elderly priest, and her father's court jester and his wife.

Dymphna's father began to search for them, and eventually landed in Belgium, where an innkeeper would not serve them. It turned out that the innkeeper had trouble exchanging that particular type of money before. Dymphna's father knew that she was in the area and eventually found her. There, in Geel, he killed Father Gerebran and demanded that Dymphna accede to his demands. When she refused, he slew her in a rage.

The site where Dymphna died is known for its miraculous healings of the insane and possessed. There is now a well-known institution upon the site as well. Dymphna is also the patron saint of sufferers of mental and nervous illnesses.