Surprising syndromes of modern life

    Margaret's friend is taking a new job in a faraway city. She wants to hold a farewell dinner party at her home. But she cant. Margaret suffers from CHAOS (Cant Have Anyone Over Syndrome). Her apartment is messy and she's embarrassed by it. “Ive never been a tidy person,” she says. “My best friend gave me some good advice. He told me to get a maid.”

    Today its so easy to get information… and lots of it. We receive telephone calls all day long. People expect a quick response to their faxes, text messages, and e-mail messages. For some people, its too much. They have information fatigue syndrome. There is so much information, they become paralyzed and cant think clearly. “I cant sleep at night because I worry,” says Bahman, a college senior. “Its terrible.”

    Hurry sickness is a straightforward name for another syndrome of modern life. “Im always rushing. I get headaches a lot. Taking aspirin seems to help,” says Mari, a mother of two and a part-time company employee. Do you engage in “deskfast” (eating breakfast at your desk at work) more than once a week? Then you, too, may suffer from hurry sickness!

    We've all complained about having too much work to do. Well, how about not having enough work? Underload syndrome is caused by having little or nothing to do at the office. You have to pretend that you're working. Steven works as a project manger. “I can finish my work in about four hours, but I'm afraid to say anything about it. I don't want to be assigned too much work!” In severe cases, people with this syndrome can get very bored and even become depressed.

    Chances are you've experienced phone neck before. Another name for it would be “pain in the neck,” because that's what people with this condition experience. Holding the phone between your neck and your ear for a long time causes phone neck. A good long massage is the suggested treatment for this syndrome.