This neighbour of mine took the affairs of the stock market into the blood stream-and
almost killed himself.
Worry can put you into a wheel chair with rheumatism and arthritis. Dr. Russell L. Cecil,
of the Cornell University Medical School, is a world-recognised authority on arthritis; and
he has listed four of the commonest conditions that bring on arthritis:
- Marital shipwreck.
- Financial disaster and grief.
- Loneliness and worry.
- Long-cherished resentments.
Naturally, these four emotional situations are far from being the only causes of arthritis.
There are many different kinds of arthritis-due to various causes. But, to repeat, the
commonest conditions that bring on arthritis are the four listed by Dr. Russell L. Cecil.
For example, a friend of mine was so hard bit during the depression that the gas
company shut off the gas and the bank foreclosed the mortgage on the house. His wife
suddenly had a painful attack of arthritis-and, in spite of medicine and diets, the arthritis
continued until their financial situation improved.
Worry can even cause tooth decay. Dr. William I.L. McGonigle said in an address before
the American Dental Association that "unpleasant emotions such as those caused by
worry, fear, nagging ... may upset the body's calcium balance and cause tooth decay".
Dr. McGonigle told of a patient of his who had always had a perfect set of teeth until he
began to worry over his wife's sudden illness. During the three weeks she was in the
hospital, he developed nine cavities- cavities brought on by worry.
Have you ever seen a person with an acutely over-active thyroid? I have, and I can tell
you they tremble; they shake; they look like someone half scared to death-and that's
about what it amounts to. The thyroid gland, the gland that regulates the body, has been
thrown out of kilter. It speeds up the heart -the whole body is roaring away at full blast
like a furnace with all its draughts wide open. And if this isn't checked, by operation or
treatment, the victim may die, may "burn himself out".
A short time ago I went to Philadelphia with a friend of mine who has this disease. We
went to see a famous specialist, a doctor who has been treating this type of ailment for
thirty-eight years. And what sort of advice do you suppose he had hanging on the wall of
his waiting-room-painted on a large wooden sign so all his patients could see it? Here it
is. I copied it down on the back of an envelope while I was waiting:
Relaxation and Recreation
The most relaxing recreating forces are a healthy
religion, sleep, music, and laughter.
Have faith in God-learn to sleep well-
Love good music-see the funny side of life-
And health and happiness will be yours.
The first question he asked this friend of mine was: "What emotional disturbance
brought on this condition?" He warned my friend that, if he didn't stop worrying, he could
get other complications: heart trouble, stomach ulcers, or diabetes. "All of these
diseases," said that eminent doctor, "are cousins, first cousins." Sure, they're first
cousins-they're all worry diseases!