Miss Nova ⁽³⁶⁾

In 1986, German sociologist Ulrich Beck wrote a book that launched a new concept – risk society. He theorised that we were in a state of reflexive modernity, a second phase of modernisation, where the norms, values, and institutions that fell into place in the…

I think most schizophrenics would agree that it’s a pretty lonely ride. Social settings become very difficult when you’re suffering from delusions of grandeur thinking you’re the future queen of England. You believe people are trying to manipulate you while you’re busy remapping your associations.

While I’ve always thought that we may be overprescribing SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, a type of antidepressant) to people who are feeling blue, I thought the science was chrystal clear that low serotonin levels caused depression. I was therefore highly surprised when I learnt…

Every time I experience psychosis, I stop eating meat. Fish is the exeption, perhaps because I grew up to Kurt Cobain singing “It’s okay to eat fish, ‘cause they don’t have any feelings.” Or more likely, because I used to go fishing every summer with…

I’m reading Ethan Watters exposé Crazy Like Us where he postulates that the most devastating consequence of the global spread of American culture is not the obesity epidemic or bomb craters but the destruction of the human psyche itself. We are on track to homogenize the…