The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-04-09
EVENING CHAT
BIZ RUTH CAMERON.

Right in our very respectable neighbour
| hood there lives woman who is Scruel-
| Iy abused slave. No, not slave in the
! old sense, nor a slave in the new sense
| of white slaves" nor even a slave to
| her husband children. This woman is
| simply what 1 call an obsession slave.
That is: she's the unhappy and tortured
vassal and victim of the obsessions which
she herself sets up as masters over her
self.
Do fail to make myself clear? Well,
suppose 1 become concrete. This woman
has very kind and devoted husband. He
is occasionally called away on business
TRIPS and on the last trip, his customary
bl-weekly letter failed to come on one
occasion His wife at once became OBJ
sessed of the idea that he did not love
her any longer. She brooded over this
loea' amassed evidence to prove it, became
aDsoluteIy convinced of it, and in the
few days in which she did not hear from
him, actually worried herself almost sick
At the end of the week two letters came
together; the first had been missent by
the postal authorities. We had told her
all the time that something like this was
the cause of the delay, but she was so
completely under the domination of her
obsessions that she could not use her rea-
son or her common sense.
So much for one example of her slavery.
She has other obseSSionS on many other
subjects, and 1 find her in the enslaved
state sadly often.
obsession slavery. but l think a great
many OF us suffer in lesser de-
gree from this mental disease. For that
is what it is, We allow an idea to take
possession of us and we become absol-
utely incapable of using reason on the
subject, And that is not healthy or nor
MAJ. we get an idea that we are going
to lose our position; that some dear one
no longer loves US; that we are losing
our mental keenness. or our grip on bust
ness. our ability in some direction:
people r6 will
aversion; and we begin to hunt for evil
dence to support this idea, And in this
kind of hunting one is always sure of
bagging plenty of game
BY and by something happens to COM
pletely diSprove our fears, Our employ
er gives us an unasked raise; the loved
one offers some unusual and unmistak-
able proof of Affection we demonstrate
our mental power or our grip on business
even to ourselves; or we are brought face
to face with some unexpected proof of our
popularity; and then We say, I'm never be
so foolish again" And we are not-untiI
the next time.
What's the cure for this common dis
ease? Well the best cure, as for all dis
have 1t. Don't let yourself get into this
habit Of mind. When you find yourself
brooding over anything like this, take
your mind by the scruff of the neck as
Arnold Bennett says. and put it on some
other subject. Do this hundred times,
If necessary You will never regret the
effort.
But what if the disease is already
started?" some unhappy victim asks.
Well, then, administer the same treat
ment, only more of it. Furthermore
when you have found that one of these
DECISIONS was utterly foolish, write down
that fact and keep the document where
you see 1t when the next attack starts. |
Don't let your attacks get under way. |
Nip them in the bud. Again, don't give
yourself time to brood. Keep busy work |
ing and playing and being happy. When |
you feel an attack coming on, go out into |
Gods serene outdoors and try to absorb !
some of it's serenity Take a long walk; |
try to get your body healthy and your |
mind will get some of the benefit. Go |
and call on some cheerful friend who |
will give you the contagion of his optim-
ISM or visit some one less fortunate than |
you whose real troubles will shame your |
imaginary ones.