The Social Causes of Our Depression and Attention Crises, with Johann Hari
Diagnoses of depression, anxiety and attention disorders are skyrocketing around the world. The dominant story is that these issues are primarily biological in nature: caused by a person’s genetic makeup or brain chemistry.
Here to reframe this perspective and shed light on the social causes of mental health issues, is 3-time New York Times bestselling author Johann Hari, whose TED talks on depression and addiction have been viewed more than 93 million times.
Today’s conversation focuses on Johann’s most recent book, Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention, which was named one of the 3 best books of the year by Amazon, and lauded by everyone from Oprah to Gabor Mate.
Johann explains why our ability to pay attention is collapsing, and the powerful forces that are stealing your focus from you. We discuss the concepts of cruel optimism, surveillance capitalism, the crisis of kids' attention and ADHD, and explore alternatives and solutions.
We also discuss themes from Johann’s second book, Lost Connections: Uncovering The Real Causes of Depression – and the Unexpected Solutions. He argues that if we want to get to the root cause of depression and anxiety, we need to stop asking “what’s wrong with you?” and instead ask, “what happened to you?”.
The conversation explores the limitations of biological narratives in understanding mental health issues. It highlights the importance of addressing the underlying causes of depression and anxiety, such as childhood trauma and everyday stresses. The connection between loneliness, anxiety, and depression is also discussed, emphasizing the need for social connection and community support.
This episode is a masterclass in what it means to be trauma-informed.
To download your free training video ‘What is Nervous System Dysregulation?’, please visit nervoussystemschool.com/focus
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