"I am a general doctor. But a low stress life in general is good for one physically and mentally. The physical symptoms can lead to ongoing cardiovascular problems, weight gain, reproductive problems, generally the side-effects are very unpleasant and largely ignored."

He wrang his hands together.

"Sorry I am prone to talking a lot about things no one is interested in, and I thought for a moment that I was boring you." It was an ongoing fault, the assumption that no one was interested, the embarrassment for having said too much, but also the eagerness to explain things.