Salecl:

[...] Such a hysteric usually concludes: “If only my mother hadn’t done me this in my youth … if only that encounter had never ocurred … if only I could turn the clock backwards and arrange things differently”. Belief in such an “if only” is a necessary fantasy that enables the hysteric to sustain the position of innocent victim. Since the clock cannot be turned back, the hysteric can do nothing to change the situation.