(22). Letter From An African Psychiatrist

11 Reasons for staying in South Africa.

23/08/2021

….. God told Abram to leave his native land and his father's house for a land that God would show him

…. At age 75, Abram took his wife Sarai

…. And traveled to Moreh, at Shechem in Canaan

…. Abram then moved to the hill country east of Bethel 

…. Then Abram journeyed toward the Negev

… And famine struck the land, so Abram went down to Egypt.

(Genesis 12.1-3)

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Eleven Reasons For Staying In South Africa.

Humans, by and large, are nomads. We are a restless species. Moving about is in our genes. Bipedalism, walking upright, is the reason Adam and Eve walked out of Eden, why Abraham and his family were instructed to "Go, go to the land I will show you", and ancient hominids could walk out of North East Africa and populate the world.

The fittest survived by venturing out, exploring, taking risks, looking for a safe place to bring up the children. And we have inbuilt mind tricks suggesting the grass is always greener on the other side.

Emigration to other lands is a deep, deep historical phenomena that is not going away anywhere soon.  It is a difficult question (to stay or to go?) to answer as the consequences of the choice may only realize generations later. And always remember the certainty that the future is uncertain. Life is difficult, wherever you are.

I am a probabilist! So, when possible, I work fastidiously on improving the odds of success for my desired outcomes; and decreasing the odds for worst case scenarios. Always trying to hedge my bets.

For example, because I aim to live a healthy, long, meaningful lifespan, my lifestyle choices, based on ancient wisdom and evidence based medicine, are deliberately chosen to increase the odds of longevity: real food, daily exercise, fronting nature, full doses of nightly sleep, life long learning, strong relationships, remaining curious, vaccination, and letting go of what I cannot control. And not smoking, not sweating the small stuff, not taking things too seriously.

Another example is the funding of my life long journey. My greatest fear is living old, old age in poverty; sans memory. How do I decrease these odds of spending the sunset of my life in destitution?

A good habit of mine is slowly saving and accumulating a reasonable storage of wealth (investments and property), and earning a daily income to cover the essentials of my cost of living; and my joy of life long learning. Also, the meme of “less is more” decreases unnecessary consumption expenses, and is the dominant lens of my financial decision-making.

A third example is ‘where on earth’ is the best place to live safely, to contribute, to have purpose and meaning? Basically, to fulfil all levels of the Abraham Maslow pyramid, from the bottom (water, food, rest) to its tip (self-actualisation). Where should my bed rest that maximise my odds of achieving my mission? My answer, today, is very solid: 11 Summingway, Glenhazel, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa, 2192, is my right place at the right time.

Let me be absolutely clear. I am not naive to serious threats and systematic weaknesses facing South Africa. I read a wide range of newspapers, everyday, that trumpet the negative narrative (even, if at times, realistic). I am not an ostrich with its head in the ground.

And after thousands of discussions with friends, family and patients, I conclude that ultimately everyone finds and places themselves in unique situations; everyone has their own cognitive distortions and unconscious fears - everyone has their own resources and lucky or unlucky breaks.

The worst decisions are made on the fly, when the mind is emotionally hijacked or following the herd of groupthink, blindly. So, lets slow the pace, and approach a complex matter from a more rational perspective.

It is time to change the trajectory of the (declinism) narrative. Put on the kettle, take a long breath, and with a cup of coffee in your hand, read on for a broader perspective from a contrarian psychiatrist.

So here are my 11 reasons for staying and helping:

1). Wherever you go there you are.

You may move physically, but the contents of your mind stays with you. You can run from home, but can’t hide from yourself. Narcissism and neuroticism know no boundaries; unresolved trauma and regrets occupies the invisible baggage schlepped along; fear is universal. We call this subjective real estate your mindset, your inner world. You own it.

If you have a growth mindset then you will be open to the challenges and focus your energy and time and resources to meet them. Wherever you are.

You will bounce back from adversity when mistakes are made, and manage all the criticism that accompanies the move.

A fixed mindset will not prosper, generally because of learnt helplessness and a victim position - not uncommon. The best immigrants for any country - are growth-mindsetters.

2). Weather. 

The massive challenges facing the young grandchildren of the world will be climate change. Rising sea levels, flooding rivers, uncontrollable fires, heat waves, extensive droughts, or destructive hurricanes can all cause havoc to a lifetime of work.

Johannesburg is blessed with the best seasonal climate of any major city in the world. Winter is rain free, chilly at nights, and blue skies most days. Summers are blessed with afternoon thundershowers, and full bloom Jacarandas. We have one of the largest urban planted forests, ever.  

3). Civil society.

When looting erupted in July, 2021, it was not the government or private sector that squashed it within a few days. It was civil society. It was the taxi drivers, the humble workers, the poor communities that built laagers around the shopping malls and warehouses. Civil society was outraged by the uncivil behaviors.

South Africa has many diverse pockets of noisy, value driven self-managing souls, who simply want their space in the sun, want a better present and future. Watch this space. Incredible energy and passion.

We ought to channel our efforts on maximizing civil society initiatives; less reliant on government to solve local issues; and allow the private sector to create work and jobs (and tax) to solve the big problems. (And we are slowly developing into a liberal democracy, and have a very progressive national constitution: protective of the rule of law, minority rights and freedom to practice your choice of religion. Very important! If in doubt, put on your backpack and visit a few autocratic states.)

4). Language.

Although there are 11 official languages in South Africa, English dominates, and is the lingua franca. No need to learn another language especially later in life. If you emigrate to a land with another dominant language this can be a struggle, although it is an excellent brain gym workout. Mandarin is a good option.

(From my patient files: In the 1970s there was a wave of immigration from Madeira, Angola and Mozambique to South Africa. All could speak Portuguese, but very few learnt English. Many were paralyzed, socially and economically, by this inability to converse with the locals. They died in their fifties, but only buried in their seventies!)

5). Diversity of Relationships. 

Robin Dunbar, an anthropologist and social scientist, estimates that the optimal number of (trust-based) relationships an adult human being can sustain is not more than 150 people. Those at the center (spouse, parents, children, best friend) are less than ten in number. The rest are acquaintances, work colleagues, friendly neighbours, those with a shared same interest (book club, faith based, bridge players, bird watchers, .... ), and the wide spread of regular transactional service providers: the baker, butcher, barber, doctor, dentist, plumber, electrician, plumber, gardener, mentor.....

Shirra and I are blessed to have a rich and diverse range of human relationships. Priceless. Interesting. Life affirming.

All relationships provide the spice to life. When emigrating, this Dunbar number of 150 drops significantly. It can take decades to rebuild. And, believe it not, many emigrants tell me in absolute confidence, that the real reason they leaving is because of toxic family relationships!

(From my medical files: Unstable minds, marriages and families come apart when stress tested by emigration challenges.)

6). Plenty of solvable problems.

South Africa has many, many dents to straighten, as do all the other 219 countries. Some challenges can be helped along by voluntary service, and many can be converted into entrepreneurial profit making enterprises. As Ghandi said: Be the change you want.

I am thinking about solar energy (off the grid), education (online), food security (urban farming), transportation (electric vehicles) and anything to do with the inevitable disruption coming down the 4th Industrial Revolution line. If I was forty years younger, I would focus my energies on one of the infinite opportunities that are unfolding, right now, in front of our noses.

7). Rapid Internet Connections.

The Internet (and all it’s derivatives) is the greatest development this century. It links people from all over the globe; millions of people can work from home. Information transfer is immediate.

We have wifi and fiber. 5G will only benefit the cause. Globalisation via cyberspace is on the front foot: Zoom, Skype, Google, YouTube, Facebook, What's App, Instagram, Microsoft Office Documents, GPS, Masterclasses, Netflix, Amazon Prime ......... 

8). Financial Independence

Emigrating is an expensive story. The dollar rand exchange rate is not in our favor. Property is much cheaper here, and more spacious; food as well (relative to the so called developed countries.) Tertiary education costs in South Africa are not prohibitive: most middle families can afford tuition fees.

Finance 101: Income streams are limited especially starting all over, and expenses are bottomless. Emigration for middle aged breadwinners makes it more daunting. Taking on long term debt, and all of it’s implicit, embedded slavery to making ends meet, is highly likely. Expect a drop in living standards. Financial independence, unless taking a small fortune, or starting very young (under 25 years) is a long way off.

(From my medical files: some emigrants from South Africa were victims of scams leaving them penniless, and unable to return home.)

9). Vibrant Private Sector.

Our banking systems and capital markets are world class. So too, private health care and education. More and more private-public partnerships are blossoming. Our hotels are amongst the best, as are tourist spots especially game reserves and beaches. We have a fully functioning international stock exchange, well maintained highways linking cities, and when the commodity cycle booms, mines hum along and taxes flow in. Our agriculture products are highly profitable after good rains. We are then net exporters feeding many mouths.

10). No major enemy on our borders trying to wipe us off the map.

Who are our immediate neighbours? Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Eswatini, Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Enough said! And a bonus, we are faraway from the geopolitical clash between China and the USA. We do not have thousands of InterContinental Ballistic missiles aimed at our homes.

And the most important reason:

11). Happy Wife, Happy Life. Happy Spouse, Happy House.

Shirra loves every inch of our home on SummerWay, and is at the peak of her university career. She is highly influential in post graduate medical education. Her contribution to her students, and the health system, is enormous.

I like it when she is very busy, but not too exhausted. On emigration, for the foreseeable future, Shirra is immovable. And when the children and grandchildren visit, we are delighted by their enthusiastic presence. We live in a joyful, loving, safe home.

In my little castle, I have my secluded writing spots, my consulting room, a group therapy area, an overflowing library of books and reading area, two boxes of worms degrading organic refuse, a tiny sunlit hothouse to germinate indigenous tree seeds, a small, organic veggie garden, slides and swings, basketball hoops, a plunge pool, and a meditation sitting space. What else do I lack? Very little.

So at present my two worlds I reside in, as we all do, are content: my external world of diverse relationships and vibrant home, and my internal world of thoughts and emotions. And blessed to have a growth mindset and a partner for life. QED.

I rest my case.

Footnote.

QED is an initialism of the Latin phrase "quod erat demonstrandum", literally meaning "what was to be shown".

Traditionally, the abbreviation is placed at the end of a mathematical proof or philosophical argument in print publications to indicate that the proof or the argument is complete, and hence is used with the meaning "thus it has been demonstrated".[Wiki]

(c) Dr Jonathan D Moch
Psychiatrist, writer.

Website

www.jdmoch.com

Core Professional Interest

Cognitive-Behavior Therapy

”Yes, You Can!”

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Links

1). Abraham Maslow

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Maslow

2). Robin Dunbar

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Dunbar