The Happy Hypochondriac

How does a person stay upbeat in life when she constantly fears death or other health catastrophes? This humorous, absurd, yet relatable story offers a glimpse into the antics of a hypochondriac; from the rapturous to the downright ugly. She endures dance recitals gone wrong, first love amid the glow of mini golf, living the college dream with waffle batter in her hair, the gut-wrenching loss of her parents, forging lasting love while clinging to a mountain, and starting her own family with a rash so bad she was declared a medical marvel; but shows it's possible to function, succeed and even have fun despite the craziness. About the Author: Kat Spitzer writes the blog, "The Happy Hypochondriac" (www.happyhypochondriac.com). She also writes nonfiction for magazines. The Happy Hypochondriac is her first book. She graduated from Vanderbilt University and Vermont Law School. The word "hypochondriac" appears in all of her medical files. She lives in Maryland, surrounded by her very patient and understanding friends and family.

Tormented Hope is a book about mind and body, fear and hope, illness and imagination. It explores, in the stories of nine individuals, the relationship between mind and body as it is mediated by the experience, or simply the terror, of being ill. And in an intimate investigation of those nine lives, it shows how the mind can make a prison of the body, by distorting our sense of ourselves as physical beings. Brian Dillon, whose brilliant debut In the Dark Room established him as an uncommonly intelligent and fluent explorer of the realm where ideas and emotions overlap, looks at nine prominent hypochondriacs - James Boswell, Charlotte Brontë, Charles Darwin, Florence Nightingale, Daniel Paul Schreber, Alice James, Marcel Proust, Glenn Gould and Andy Warhol - and what their lives tell us about the way the mind works with, and against, the body. His findings are stimulating and surprising, and the stories he tells are often moving, sometimes hilarious, and always gripping.

Charlotte Brontë found in her illnesses, real and imagined, an escape from familial and social duties, and the perfect conditions for writing. The German jurist Daniel Paul Schreber believed his body was being colonized and transformed at the hands of God and doctors alike. Andy Warhol was terrified by disease and by the idea of disease. Glenn Gould claimed a friendly pat on his shoulder had destroyed his ability to play piano. And we all know someone who has trawled the Internet in solitude, seeking to pinpoint the source of his or her fantastical symptoms. The Hypochondriacs is a book about fear and hope, illness and imagination, despair and creativity. It explores, in the stories of nine individuals, the relationship between mind and body as it is mediated by the experience, or simply the terror, of being ill. And, in an intimate investigation of those lives, it shows how the mind can make a prison of the body by distorting our sense of ourselves as physical beings. Through witty, entertaining, and often moving examinations of the lives of these eminent hypochondriacs—James Boswell, Charlotte Brontë, Charles Darwin, Florence Nightingale, Alice James, Daniel Paul Schreber, Marcel Proust, Glenn Gould, and Andy Warhol—Brian Dillon brilliantly unravels the tortuous connections between real and imagined illness, irrational fear and rational concern, the mind's aches and the body's ideas.

The hilarious first-person account of life as a hypochondriac-from the critically acclaimed author of Devil in the Details. Jennifer Traig does not suffer from lupus, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's Disease, or muscular dystrophy. Nor does she have SUDS, the mysterious disorder that claims healthy young Asian men in their sleep. What she does have is hypochondria. In Well Enough Alone, Traig provides an uproariously funny inquiry into her ailment, as well as a well-researched history of the disorder. While chronicling her life as a hypochondriac and the minor conditions that helped to fuel her persistent self-diagnosis, she offers a literary tour of the disorder's past and present. And by the end, her journey leaves her more knowledgeable, a little less neurotic, and-one might say-healthier.

Do you worry about that mole, or have concerns over a recurring headache? If you've ever had heartburn and thought it was the "Big One," the Happy Hypochondriac has been there! So how does a person stay upbeat during life's ludicrous moments when she constantly fears death and poor health? These humorous, absurd, yet relatable anecdotes offer a glimpse into the antics of a hypochondriac. Your life will start to seem a whole lot more normal! With a little bit of wisdom from the popular Happy Hypochondriac blog, and a sense of humor, this collection of snippets from daily life shows it's possible to function, succeed and have fun despite the craziness.

This unprecedented collection of 27,000 quotations is the most comprehensive and carefully researched of its kind, covering all fields of science and mathematics. With this vast compendium you can readily conceptualize and embrace the written images of scientists, laymen, politicians, novelists, playwrights, and poets about humankind's scientific achievements. Approximately 9000 high-quality entries have been added to this new edition to provide a rich selection of quotations for the student, the educator, and the scientist who would like to introduce a presentation with a relevant quotation that provides perspective and historical background on his subject. Gaither's Dictionary of Scientific Quotations, Second Edition, provides the finest reference source of science quotations for all audiences. The new edition adds greater depth to the number of quotations in the various thematic arrangements and also provides new thematic categories.