anxiety - The African Mirror

Jan

2024

Stressed out? Why mindfulness and meditation help us cope with the world

IN a world fraught with anxiety, stress, and environmental and humanitarian disasters, people are looking for ways to cope. Many have turned to practices originating in ancient eastern philosophies for guidance. Among these is mindfulness, which is linked to meditation. Lucy Draper-Clarke, researcher and author of The Compassionate Activist, spoke to health & medicine editor Nadine Dreyer about looking inwards and cultivating compassion, awareness and gratitude. LUCY DRAPER-CLARKE, Research Associate in Compassion, University of the Witwatersrand What does mindfulness actually mean? The original translation of the Pali word sati is “remembering”. It was about remembering your ethics, the right way…

May

2023

By The African Mirror

Fear and loathing in South Africa: book examines how anxiety plays out in everyday life

LITERATURE

SOCIAL scientists have shown how freedom in South Africa has lost its meaning for many in the country. Despondency about democracy is on the rise as the promise of prosperity under a caring government continues to ring hollow for many, thanks to poor governance, corruption and incompetence. Nicky Falkof is a media studies professor who researches race and anxiety. The Conversation Africa’s Thabo Leshilo spoke to her about her book, Worrier State, which shows how narratives of fear manifest in mainstream and digital media, and the role that ‘race’, class, gender, space and identity play in these in the country.…

Aug

2020

By The African Mirror

Coronavirus: the pandemic is changing our brains – here are the remedies

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

BARBARA JACQUELYN SAHAKIAN, Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, University of Cambridge CHRISTELLE LANGLEY, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Cambridge DENIZ VATANSEVER, Junior Principal Investigator, Fudan University WHETHER you have contracted COVID-19 or not, your brain is likely to have changed over the past few months. The virus itself can cause a number of neurological problems, along with anxiety and depression. The isolation and worry caused by the pandemic can similarly alter our brain chemistry and cause mood disorders. In our new paper, published in Neuropsychopharmacology Reviews, we have investigated how to best overcome the brain changes linked to the…