Anthony Daniels

Fearing The Worst

Tormented Hope: Nine Hypochondriac Lives

By

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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