Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: "Controlled stress is the basic need of the body..."

President of Üsküdar University Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan was the guest of the Gün Ortası program live-broadcast on EKOTÜRK TV. Tarhan made evaluations on the topic "Mental Health and Stress Management in Türkiye". Emphasizing the link between brain management and mental health management, Tarhan expressed that "The organ of connection between the world of mana and the world of matter is the brain. If we manage our brains well, we manage our mental health well." Noting that controlled stress is the basic need of the body, Tarhan emphasized that it is necessary to learn to manage stress instead of being afraid of it.

"If we manage our brains well, we manage our mental health well"

In the program moderated by Eda Özdemir, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan pointed out that free thought should be managed correctly and emphasized that the mental capacity of human beings establishes civilization. Tarhan stated that "Unlike other living things, human beings have a serious mental capacity and self-consciousness. In other living things, there is no self-consciousness, there are basic physiological functions such as eating, drinking, reproducing, and shelter. A human being’s mental capacity builds civilization. A person produces abstract thought, challenges nature and the environment, and transcends themselves. There is such a capacity. Since there is free thought, it is necessary to manage that free thought correctly in this case. The mental health of the person comes to the fore to manage it correctly. In recent years, research on psychological resilience has always been concentrated in neuroscience. The organ of connection of the world of meaning with the world of matter is the brain. If we manage our brains well, we manage our mental health well."

"Human beings transcend their genetic limits"

Stating that human beings have exceeded their genetic limits with the idea of freedom and independence, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan stated that human beings are in a position above nature. Tarhan made the following remarks: "The human child is born neuropsychologically premature. One learns by living life. That is, a third of our personality is innate. This does not change in animals. It stays the same and it is genetically coded. It makes the same spider nest as it was a thousand years ago. The ant does the same, but we do not do the same actions. We improve our behavior. For instance, when you look at the behavior of an ant, a spider, a cat, a dog, they do not cross genetic limits; however, humans do exceed their genetic limits. There is the idea of freedom and independence in man. There are meta-cognitive tendencies associated with this. Because of this feature, humans are not a part of nature, and they are not identical with nature. They have a position above nature. They have s a position to dominate nature. In animal psychology, it is enough to study their genes."

The Rule of 3 in medicine...

Talking about the protocols used in the treatments, Prof. Tarhan emphasized that the rule of 3, that is, 'Diagnosis, Treatment and Follow-up' must proceed together. Tarhan stated that "Our duty is to use all the possibilities of medicine for the recovery of the patient. Some diseases require drug treatment, some diseases require magnetic stimulation, some diseases require electroshock, and some patients only need psychotherapy; however, it is necessary to make a correct diagnosis first. After making the correct diagnosis, there are possible diagnoses. It is also necessary to predict and predict the future. After doing these, a plan is made for the treatment of these people. In such cases, we make the diagnosis and determine the target problems related to the recovery of the person. After that, we make a treatment plan. For example, only medication is sufficient if the illness has just started. If the illness has lasted a little longer, we call it psychotherapy with medication. If the illness requires a little stronger treatment and if it requires more comprehensive treatment, we call it drug therapy and magnetic stimulation treatments. In other words, we apply a tripartite protocol. There are also three steps of treatment in the tripartite protocol. The first is the minimum method of treatment, here the drug treatment is the gold standard. The second is optimal treatment. It is psychotherapy along with medication. And the third is maximum treatment. It includes medication, psychotherapy, magnetic stimulation and genetic research. There is the rule of 3 in medicine, 'Diagnosis, Treatment and Follow-up'. If you make the diagnosis and if you do not follow the treatment, the disease will recur. That is why the rule of 3 must applied together."

“Positive psychology tries to make a healthy person even healthier."

Tarhan emphasized the importance of positive psychology to better manage one's mood. Saying that psychology deals with the normal of the mental structure of the human being, Tarhan stated that "There are many sub-branches of psychology. It has sub-branches in all fields such as social psychology, industrial psychology, and animal psychology. Clinical psychology tries to bring the abnormal to normal. There is also positive psychology. Positive psychology also tries to make a healthy person healthier. It seeks to improve the quality of life. Studies have been carried out on this psychological resilience; however, it is called mindfulness studies. Saying positive things is not Pollyannaism, but it is about providing counseling services to that person so that they can feel better and manage their mood better. What was done in classical ancient medicine when a person was sick? A person was immediately operated on. Immediately, the hardest, most aggressive treatments were given. Now, as medicine progresses, the method of treating the patient without making a wound is used. In general medicine, it is referred to as medicine that respects tissues. In psychiatry, this is positive psychotherapy. In other words, tissue-respecting medicine has now been replaced by positive psychotherapy. To teach the person to manage their weaknesses by highlighting their strengths after measuring them, instead of focusing on the negative past traumas and negative aspects of the person and talking about them. In other words, it is to strengthen the immune system in the body and to ensure that the body defeats the disease on its own..."

70 percent of diseases are lifestyle-related...

Stating that 70 percent of diseases are related to lifestyle, Prof. Tarhan emphasized that a person who manages their relations well with his environment can be the happiest person. Tarhan stated that "Studies on the psychology of happiness, happy marriage, being a happy person are the primary studies in psychiatry, they are the gold standard. Learning how to be happy is the science of happiness. Learning this is the biggest goal of this treatment. There is preventive mental health and preventive mental health. Preventive mental health identifies risk groups and ensures that people in that person's risk group do not get sick. This happens with early diagnosis. There is also therapeutic medicine, tertiary protection. Tertiary protection. Protection is carried out so that it does not recur after the disease has passed. Preventive health is ensuring that many people do not get sick. It is to teach not to be sick. In fact, 60 percent to 70 percent of diseases are related to lifestyle, diet error, social relations and close relationships error. Relationships affect a lot. A person has a relationship with themselves, a relationship with their family, a relationship with their social environment, and a relationship with their existential environment. The person who manages these relationships well will be the happiest person."

"We cannot manage stress without knowing it"

Stating that controlled stress is beneficial, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan emphasized that it is necessary to learn to manage stress instead of being afraid of it. Tarhan stated that "We cannot manage stress without knowing it. Stress has a biological and a psychological pillar. The biological pillar is that our brain responds to fight or flight when it is under stress. The fight response, that is, if the person has the strength to fight it, he is fighting. If he wants to escape, he reacts to the flight. When it reacts to a battle, five chemicals are released in the brain, which we call the five horsemen of darkness. Special mixtures suitable for the feelings of ‘grudge, anger, hatred, jealousy, hostility' are secreted in the brain. When the autonomic nervous system is stimulated, there is a fight-or-flight response when there is sympathetic activation. The muscles of the shoulders, neck, back are contracting. The pupils dilate, attention increases, you focus. In such cases, all sugar and fat stores in the body are activated. Blood sugar and fat are rising. The body is focused on fighting at that moment. If this happens for a few hours, it is beneficial, focus time increases; however, it starts to be harmful if there is chronic stress. Therefore, controllable stress is beneficial while uncontrollable stress is harmful. The reason behind this is that stress stimulates one's brain. Controllable stress is like riding a bike, if you use it in a controlled way, you will improve, your muscles will develop, but if you stand uncontrolled, you will topple off. If you use it too fast or use it randomly, you will still be knocked over. Controlled stress is the basic need of the body. Let's not be afraid of stress and let's manage stress."

"Generation Z is more inclined to be innovative and entrepreneurial"

Stating that the old generations matured in poverty, Tarhan stated that the new generations matured in abundance, and this was more difficult. Tarhan concluded his remarks as follows "It is necessary to understand the X, Y and Z generations correctly. Generation X is the radio generation. The generation that grew up with the radio. Millennials are the television generation. They were able to socialize with television. Generation Z is also the social media generation. Generation Z is free-spirited, they question everything, and they are in need of change. Past generations matured in hardship while current generations are maturing in abundance. It is harder to mature in abundance. There are many people in Generation Z who have gained the ability to manage their emotions and manage themselves. There are more opportunities in your life, there are more possibilities, and there are more conveniences waiting in front of you. The threats of Generation Z are different. They have a tendency to comfort and convenience. If they manage this, they can make a difference. Therefore, every age has a maturity. Gen Z is more inclined to be innovative and entrepreneurial. It is necessary to open up fields for them in science, art, discovery and fields teaching thought and contributing to the advancement of thought. If these areas are opened, Generation Z is the generation that will save the future."

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)