Category
anxiety.
6 posts
The very real fear of public speaking
Making a speech is right up there with death, divorce and snakes as one of people’s absolutely worst nightmares. Just the thought of getting up in front of a room and having to say a few words can send the pulse racing. Actually doing it can cause palpitations, raised blood pressure, and severe perspiration even […]
30 April 2026
The enigma of antidepressants
Antidepressants are widely used and have helped millions of people – but they are still something of a puzzle in modern medicine. Despite decades of research, scientists are still debating exactly how they work, why they help some people and not others, and what their long-term role should be in treating depression. To understand the […]
16 April 2026
Our ancient alarm system
There is a guard that walks beside every one of us. It has no name, no face, and yet it has saved your life more times than you will ever know. It is your ancient alarm system. Long before cities, before language shaped into poetry and law, before even the first fire was tamed, our […]
8 April 2026
Which torture would you prefer?
I recently came across an interview I did back in 2008 for Business Day with Murphy Marobe, then CEO of Kagiso Media. As a young man, he was a political activist and became a target of the apartheid security police, who apprehended and tortured him. When the interview wrapped up and we were saying our […]
26 February 2026
Why it’s difficult to eliminate anxiety
Our DNA is reluctant to give up behaviours with a high survival value, and anxiety is right up there with the top ones. Imagine two Homo sapien ancestors eating a meal of raw squirrel 300 000 years ago. One enjoys the sunset so much that he ignores the rustling behind a bush. His meal partner, […]
9 July 2025
Why it’s difficult to eliminate anxiety
Our DNA is reluctant to give up behaviours with a high survival value, and anxiety is right up there with the top ones. Imagine two Homo sapiens ancestors eating a meal of raw squirrel 300 000 years ago. One enjoys the sunset so much that he ignores the rustling behind a bush. His meal partner, […]
30 January 2025