REBECCA ROOD'S MAILBAG................

Dear Rebecca,

What is it with me ?

Whenever I am involved in a tricky slam hand, whether as a declarer or a defender, my mind goes completely blank. Either the excitement or the fear ( maybe the combination of both ) stops me thinking rationally.

It seems that every time I'm asked to make a crucial decision, the quality of my thinking, which is always variable, can collapse into a form of dimentia. I'm at my wits' ends not knowing whether or not I have a deteriorating neurological condition.

Yours Ben Jerelbo

Dear Ben,

Yes, the condition you speak of is a rare form of dimentia, which shuts down your mind the moment you allow panic, fear and anxiety to create chemical imbalances in your brain. This causes your neurological communication transmitters to malfunction.

I have known hundreds of ageing bridge players with similar symptoms, but you should count yourself lucky since their problems relate to any tricky bridge hand ( not slams) . Indeed, the more they allow anxiety to overwhelm them, the loopier they get. I once came across a player who was panicking over a 2S contract. As her brain went into shut down, and dimentia took hold, she first asked me what contract was she in, and then after I told her she proceeded to play like she was in no trumps .

So my advice to you is simple. Give up the game before you really start embarrassing yourself in front of others. Try to avoid being remembered as a complete fool or ass-hole.

Yours Rood by name, Rood by nature