It may be comforting to realise that most people, most of the time, are far too self absorbed to notice any of the myriad ways in which many of us convince ourselves that we are doing something wrong (on a long continuum from something foul and inexcusable, to something less than perfect). But in the long run it is hardly a comforting picture, everyone walking around thinking about what everyone else is thinking about them; in fact it looks like a colossal waste of time and energy.

It’s official! Or at least one study, the Framingham Offspring Study ‘Marital status, marital strain, and risk of coronary heart disease or total mortality’, shows that women who bottled up their feelings during arguments with their spouse were four times as likely to die during the 10 year study period as those who told their husbands exactly how they felt.

It is of no surprise to anyone that women in their thirties or forties coping with work, young children and ‘running a home’ are exhausted to an extent which is dangerous to their health. What can we do about this dramatic state of affairs?

So, stress before and during pregnancy affects not only the gender of the baby but their future health and, so we are told, their intelligence. Not too much pressure, then!

We have all heard of the fight-flight response, the system which kicks in automatically when we perceive danger. Less commonly known are the neural circuits triggered by social contact that calm the heart, relax the gut, and switch off fear.

On Monday 9 April, G4 star Ben Thapa will begin an online auction of sports, music and showbiz goodies to raise money for charity. Prizes include VIP tickets to meet the team at any Bolton Wanderers premiership match, tickets to meet G4 on their forthcoming tour, and a signed Manchester United football. Ben has organised the auction, which is being held on eBay to raise money for the Mental Health Foundation.

The Mental Health Foundation has welcomed the UK Department of Health’s announcement that it will make computer-based cognitive behavioural therapy available to patients with common mental health problems such as anxiety or mild to moderate depression.