Anthony Daniels
Fearing The Worst
Tormented Hope: Nine Hypochondriac Lives
By Brian Dillon
Penguin Ireland 277pp £18.99 order from our bookshop
In a sense, we live in a golden age of hypochondriasis, for we are by far the healthiest people who have ever lived and yet we fret about our health as much or more than those who lived during the Black Death. A long life expectancy does not by itself alleviate anxiety; the difference between our fears and objective reality has never been greater.
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