Main cause of stress: Any stress I suffer would be totally work-related. Politics is a stressful life. Some days, you could be working 15 or 16 hours. Then you have the additional difficulty of being away from home and family for a lot of the time. Our three children are aged from six months to six years old.
Criticism is part and parcel of the job and you shouldn't be too put out if people criticise you. You can never be complacent in this portfolio. You see some very sad, traumatic cases and how they can affect whole families.
It can get to you, because at the end of the day you are in command of the organisation with ultimate responsibility for the public's health. Sometimes, the system does not respond as efficiently as it should. As minister, it rests with you, so that can be difficult.
Coping with stress: I took an oath to keep Sundays free, and that has worked relatively well. Playing with the kids is the easiest way to forget troubles. I love to get out in the back garden with them to kick a ball. It shuts off the outside world.
Sport and music are very important in my life, but the ultimate de-stresser is swimming in the sea off west Cork. There's nowhere like west Cork. People leave me alone there because I'm part of the scene. I have been going for about 20 years.
Election pressures: I have always relished elections. They are stressful, but when you are campaigning, you don't get time to reflect or worry about it. I've never had the problem of lying in bed, worrying if I'm going to hold onto my seat. Do politicians suffer more stress than other professions? I would think the stress is similar to that experienced by any professions engaging with the public. People's expectations are getting higher all the time, and that puts pressure on anyone dealing with the public.
In conversation with Alison Healy