The Hardiness Effect

Introduction The choice of Hercules

The philosophical narrative of Hercules at the crossroads has shaped much of Western thought, encapsulating the eternal struggle between a life of comfort or ease, and a life of virtue. As recounted by the great philosopher Socrates, the tale highlights a defining moment for Hercules (known as Heracles in the ancient Greek parable), a young man poised between two life paths, each represented by a mythological figure. The choice Hercules is offered at these crossroads epitomises the human struggle with self-discipline and endurance. His story isn’t just a myth but a philosophical template that examines the nature of human character and moral fibre, and it sets the scene for this book. At the crossroads In the myth, the young Hercules, already known to be one of the God Zeus’s mightiest sons, finds himself at a literal and metaphorical fork in the road. Here he encounters two goddesses, each offering him divergent paths that symbolise life’s potential trajectories. The first to approach him is Kakia, named Vice but who calls herself Happiness (‘Eudaimonia’ in ancient Greek). She is enchantingly beautiful, her allure magnified by her promise to Hercules of an easy life filled with luxury and pleasure obtained at the expense of others. She seductively suggests that following her would mean an easy and comfortable life devoid of hardships—a tempting offer that promises immediate gratification and comfort. The second goddess, Aretê (Virtue), presents a stark contrast. Plain in appearance yet possessing a natural beauty, she offers Hercules a challenging path. She warns of a life that would be arduous and fraught with dangers and trials greater than any man might bear. Aretê outlines a journey where true happiness and fulfilment can only be achieved through continuous effort, moral integrity and the overcoming of great adversities. She emphasises that nothing genuinely worthy or admirable can be attained without significant struggle and perseverance. Faced with these choices, Hercules chooses the path of Aretê, embracing the promise of a life filled with meaningful challenges over one of superficial ease and comfort, as offered by Kakia. This choice leads to his legendary ‘12 labours’—tasks so daunting that they would crush any ordinary man. From slaying the multi-headed Hydra to capturing the fierce Cerberus from the depths of Hades itself, Hercules not only faces these trials, but also overcomes them with extraordinary courage and wisdom. Hercules’s journey was marked by immense struggles and suffering, culminating in his tragic death from a poisoned garment that bore the blood of the Hydra. Yet, the moral integrity and greatness of spirit he displayed throughout his trials led Zeus to bestow on him the ultimate honour—that of deification (becoming a god).

Hercules’s story was so influential that it reportedly moved Zeno, the founder of Stoicism (a philosophy that I mention throughout this book), to embrace philosophy as a way of life. Zeno saw in Hercules the embodiment of psychological resilience and was inspired by his choice, which mirrored the Stoic virtues of wisdom, courage, justice and temperance (self-mastery). Zeno’s philosophical journey, and that of the Stoics who followed, was likened to Hercules’s, because they were all heroes of self-discipline and moral rigour. The story of Hercules at the crossroads became a metaphor for the Stoic ideal: the belief that a life well-lived requires confronting and rising above hardships with good character, thereby achieving true excellence and enriching the soul. Hercules’s choice teaches that embracing challenges and living virtuously, though often difficult, is ultimately more rewarding and fulfilling, leading to a life to be proud of. This narrative inspired Zeno’s embrace of philosophy and continues to influence those seeking to understand the essence of a life well-lived. Through this ancient myth, we are reminded that true happiness, which the Stoics referred to as ‘eudaimonia’ (and modern psychologists call ‘flourishing’), is not handed to us, but must be earned through a steadfast commitment to living virtuously and embracing challenges. Hercules’s choice at the crossroads was seen as being about more than the individual heroics of a demigod; it was a guiding parable for anyone seeking to lead a meaningful life. This poses the fundamental question: what type of life do you wish to lead?

Embracing our modern-day Hercules Today, we stand at our own crossroads, but the choice has morphed in ways the ancient Greeks couldn’t have imagined. While Hercules TheHardinessEffect346134_flast02.indd xi Trim Size: 152 × 229 mm   24 Jul 2025 02:12:56 PM xii The Hardiness Effect chose between virtue and vice, we’re choosing between vitality and stagnation, between biological excellence and accelerating decline. The path of Kakia has evolved, no longer promising obvious debauchery but instead seductive comfort—climate-controlled environments, convenient foods and endless entertainment that cocoon us from the very challenges that make us strong. Meanwhile, the modern embodiment of Aretê asks us to embrace not just moral virtue but also physiological wisdom—to reclaim the robust health so many of our ancestors took for granted. The decisions we make today—whether to succumb to the siren calls of modern-day Kakia or to follow the rigorous trails blazed by Aretê—will determine our own health and vitality, and that of generations to come. This book is a call to action: to reject the deceptive ease of a life of comfort and convenience (which is unlikely to end well) and to instead dive deep into the tumultuous but ultimately rewarding waters of a fully engaged life. Choosing to deliberately cultivate psychological and physiological hardiness is what this book is all about. By redefining your relationship with discomfort, reconnecting with the inherent wisdom of ancient philosophers and implementing the research provided by modern science, you can reclaim robust physical and mental health and enduring happiness. This book serves as your guide on the journey towards becoming your best self — a hardier person who faces life’s challenges with courage, discipline and a steadfast commitment to the higher virtues exemplified by Aretê. The choice you face is this: do you want to end up on your deathbed, reflecting on your life and thinking, That was a life of ease and comfort, or do you want to reflect, That was a life that was full of challenges, but one that I can be proud of?

If you want the former, close this book now and gift it to someone else. If you want the latter, read on—and prepare to get uncomfortable and inspired in equal measure.

Contemplating the lure of modern Kakia Everywhere we look, Kakia’s path tempts us. It’s in the ultraprocessed ‘comfort foods’ that crowd our supermarket shelves, nutritionally bankrupt but designed to be irresistible. Rather than nourish us, these foods are a significant driver of poor physical and mental health. It’s in the endless hours we spend binge-watching streaming services or scrolling through social media. Although entertaining, this piss-poor form of engagement is far removed from the development of meaningful connections that are critical to our mental health. Our sedentary lifestyles, increasingly devoid of the physical exertion that once defined human activity, mirror this trend. Even our approach to health has become reactive rather than proactive—a sickcare system, rather than a healthcare system. Too often, we wait until diseases and conditions are diagnosed. Doctors then prescribe medications (and sometimes secondary medications to address the side effects of the first), instead of helping to address the root causes, often driven by Kakia-inspired lifestyles of ease, comfort and indulgence. The impact of Kakia’s path on our physical and mental health is truly shocking, and a quick look at four countries that are the poster-children of Kakia’s way — Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada— bring this clearly into focus. These four ‘developed’ nations are the highest consumers of ultraprocessed foods in the world. The United States leads the way, with an estimated 73 per cent of their grocery store food items being ultra-processed, but the others aren’t far behind. The health statistics in these countries make for sobering reading — starting with those relating to being overweight and obese: ◆ A whopping 74 per cent of Americans are overweight or obese, with 42.4 per cent specifically classified as obese in the 2017–18 period, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ◆ According to the Health Survey for England, 64 per cent of Brits were overweight or obese in 2022, with 29 per cent obesity. ◆ In 2024, 66 per cent of Australians were overweight or obese, with 32 per cent obesity, based on data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). ◆ In 2023, 65.5 per cent of Canadians were overweight or obese, with 30 per cent obesity, according to Statista. The upshot? Being overweight or obese is the new normal.

Even more scary is the data for our kids, with research showing overweight or obesity predisposes those kids to a lifetime of health problems, with increased risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mental health issues, cancer and dementia, to name but a few. Here’s the breakdown for the percentage of kids overweight or obese in these four countries, according to recent national surveys: ◆ Australia: 26 per cent of 2 to 17 year olds. ◆ Canada: 25.7 per cent of 5 to 17 year olds. ◆ United Kingdom: 37.7 per cent of 10 to 11 year olds. ◆ United States: 35.4 per cent of 2 to 19 year olds.

Even more shockingly, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2015 reported that 52.3 per cent of Americans had either diagnosed or undiagnosed diabetes in 2012, and we know the trends are getting worse. All of this is strongly linked to Kakia-inspired lifestyles of comfort food and lack of physical activity. And what are governments doing about it? Overwhelmingly, they’re treating the symptoms, not the cause. In all of these countries, over 95 per cent of healthcare spending is focused on managing chronic conditions, with less than 5 per cent being spent on prevention. And in the United States, the weight-loss drug Saxenda has already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in 12 year olds to manage obesity, with safety and effectiveness trials already having been conducted. It gets worse — Novo Nordisk, the maker of Saxenda, plans to use their Phase III SCALE Kids trial data to expand the Saxenda approvals label to include obese children older than six years! That’s right — weight-loss drugs for seven year olds. We need to be focusing on the causes of these issues, not using a series of ever more complex bandaids that just kick the can down the road.

Kakia’s impact on mental health The mental health picture in our Kakia-dominated countries is equally concerning. In Australia and the United States, approximately one in five adults experienced mental illness in 2020, representing 53 million Americans and over five million Australians. In England, it was one in four — around 14 million people.

More alarmingly, mental health conditions among adolescents in these countries have been steadily worsening, with mental health issues and suicide rates among the youth skyrocketing. Mental health is a complex component of our overall wellbeing that deserves thoughtful, comprehensive care. For people with severe conditions such as major depression, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, proper diagnosis and medication can be truly lifesaving interventions. However, our current system often defaults to a primarily pharmaceutical approach that frequently overlooks the deeper roots of mental suffering and the powerful lifestyle interventions that can both prevent and address many mental health challenges. This book advocates for a more balanced and holistic approach that recognises when medical intervention is needed, while also empowering individuals with evidence-based strategies to build robust mental health from the ground up.

The medicalisation of normal experience Once, if a person felt sad, anxious or completely overwhelmed, a caring doctor might have dug deeper, taking the time to discuss what might be going on the person’s life that was influencing these feelings. Through this discussion, the doctor and patient might have been able to acknowledge this as a normal human response to difficult circumstances—something that would pass with time and proper support. Now, the system too often responds with a quick fix. You might be mentally ill—here’s a label and a prescription. This is the path of Kakia—offering quick relief without effort, and solutions without addressing root causes. And while this option seems appealing—tidy, clinical and perhaps covered by health insurance—the evidence suggests it’s failing us on a massive scale.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM ), published by the American Psychiatric Association, serves as a guide for diagnosing and classifying mental health disorders. This manual is now in its fifth edition (DSM-5), and has seen its definitions of psychiatric conditions quietly broaden with each revision. Psychiatrist Dr Mark Horowitz, a clinical research fellow at University College London, points out that these expanding conditions mean that by the age of 45, a staggering 86 per cent of us meet the criteria for a mental illness. This raises a profound question: are we collectively suffering an unprecedented mental health epidemic, or is the mental health industry expanding its diagnostic categories to pathologise normal human experience—minting patients like Central Banks mint money? Emeritus Professor Allen Frances, the psychiatrist who co-authored the DSM-IV edition in 1994, expressed concern even then about expanding diagnoses. In a recent interview, he noted, ‘There’s a kind of societal push to find a medication panacea for many problems that previously would have been conceived of as within the range of the normal difficulties of everyday life.’ Again, this isn’t to diminish genuine suffering or deny the benefit of medication within a holistic approach, especially for those with severe mental illness. And the temptations of a Kakia lifestyle are undoubtedly contributing to feelings of loneliness, isolation, anxiety and depression. However, we’ve increasingly medicalised normal responses to stress, grief and trauma. Despite all the medications and ever-expanding diagnoses, mental health outcomes continue to worsen by several metrics.

The faulty foundation: Chemistry versus experience The cornerstone of modern psychiatric medication — particularly for depression — has been the ‘chemical imbalance’ theory, which posits that conditions such as depression result from low serotonin levels. This persuasive narrative has driven billions of dollars in pharmaceutical sales and shaped public understanding for decades. However, a landmark umbrella review, published in 2023 in the journal Molecular Psychiatry by Professor Joanna Moncrieff, Dr Mark Horowitz and colleagues, analysed decades of research and reached a startling conclusion: no reliable evidence indicates depression is caused by low serotonin levels. This finding wasn’t based on fringe science but on a comprehensive, peer-reviewed analysis. And while it sparked global debate, the serotonin theory was firmly debunked. For decades, pharmaceutical company marketing promoted the idea that depression was a ‘chemical imbalance’ that antidepressants fixed by restoring serotonin. In the United States (one of two countries in the world to permit direct drug advertising to consumers), the image of sad cartoon characters perking up after taking the antidepressant Zoloft, for example, was brilliant, simple and reassuring — and, it turns out, scientifically unsupported. Chemicals are a part of this process, but it is not as simple as one chemical being too low.