WAR NERVES.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVI, Issue 229, 25 September 1915, Page 18

WAR NERVES.

HOW TO CONTROL AND CORE TttEJM. "It Is Incumbent ot>oh all of mi at present to set a strict jruard trpou our hoslth, more esp«clally In the dhectlon of aclfcontrol. Wl- are all In danger of becomImr ten yesrs older at a bound under the tension of tlie war." In these words an eminent Harley Street physician aud psychologist addremsc-d throuirh "The Weekly Dlsnatch" a wtirnl„h' to thoro sii(Terlnir from "wartime nerves." lie ackno-vvlcjjipu with n smile that tlie wurnlng ought to be applied to himaeir, for doctors ore much like other people during a world-wide convulsion like the present. s» "■.Medically speoklng," he said, "none of us Is atile fli present to avoid Increased arterial pressure. .More than onre lately I have te-sinl my blood pressure, and i have Invariably found It to be dangerously Bleb; higher than 1 could hare Imagined It to be. This proves that I nm afflicted üb-consclously. "Score* of people come to mc weekly sutTerlng from this complaint, though ln nornial times their symptoms might suggest other trouble. They confetti to mc that tlie war is never off tbelr minds, awake or asleep, aud as a rulo they experience nts of depression widen cannot be shaken oft*. "I'arentl nnd relatives of men at the front ore passing ihrouirh a severe ordeal, aiiil It Is, of coui-se, dlfllcult to preacrtoe In their case beyond urging upon them the need for quiet, patriotic resignation, sup(Kirtrd by the kuowle<lge that many others ore In the same position as themselves,' and all ore doing a great service for their country. 'Tbe spirit of optimism should be encouraged aud cultivated By optimism Ido not mesn rarclew* cocksureness. "No Rood can come of public pessimism. We will win through, all right, aud any day some very welcome news may come over. No cheer lias yet been raised In the -s-1.-iTis of London since t_he -war broke out. How very different from the Iloer war! .Uut men and women must not be afraid to be cheerful and to look cheerful. "l am s;ieaklug as a family physician, and every doctiir will bear mc out when I say that pessimism ts poison to tbe blood and the brain. •Have jnn noticed how prone tip public tinvr been recently to craggcrrT.lou A story onic siarti-sl grew out «r ail recognition In on hour Honest, trutliful, respc--t.iaile jieople- In ordinary times. I mean— tie-ame absolutely untrustworthy, despite the inrst fori cut atiscrvatlons of their veracity. " 'Inereaicd arterial pressure.' That was their trouble. They were not really responsible f..r thejr utterances. Their centre of gravity had Veen liopeloasly dislocated "