Well Enough Alone: A Cultural History of My Hypochondria Hardcover - 2008

by Traig, Jennifer

A hilarious first-person account of life as a hypochondriac, as well as a look at thecondition's history and broader culturalcontext, from the critically acclaimedauthor of Devil in the Details.

The good news is Jennifer Traig does not havelupus, multiple sclerosis, Huntington's disease,Crohn's disease, or muscular dystrophy. Shediscovers that she does not have SUDS, themysterious disorder that claims healthy youngAsian men in their sleep, nor does she haveForeign Accent Syndrome, the bizarre but realneurological condition that transforms nativeWest Virginians into Eliza Doolittle overnight.What she does have is hypochondria.

Jenny Traig's inquiry into her ailment is not onlyan uproariously funny account but also a literarytour of hypochondria, past and present:the implied hypochondria of the Talmud, theflatulence-obsessed eighteenth century, and themalady's current unfortunate lack of a celebrityspokesperson. At the same time, Traig providesan intimate look at the complement of minorconditions that have concealed her essentialhealth and driven her persistent self-diagnosis:the eczema, the shaky hands, and, worst of all,the bad hair. To her surprise, she ends her journeymore knowledgeable than she was whenshe started out, a little less neurotic, and onemight say healthier.

Well Enough Alone is the definitive book onbeing worried well, in all of its gruesome andhysterical detail, from one of our funniest andmost distinctive literary voices.