Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, NPİSTANBUL Board Chairman and Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that psychological resilience in times of crisis is a skill that humans can learn and develop, saying, “Crises should be seen as a resilience training. Every difficulty experienced is an opportunity for a person to realize their inner strength.”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that just as a device returns to its factory settings, individuals should ‘refresh’ themselves at regular intervals, adding, “This is the key to living a healthier, more productive, and peaceful life. Our brain has the ability to program itself. Refreshing ourselves is essentially programming and updating ourselves.”
Within the scope of World Mental Health Day, celebrated every year on October 10, the World Health Organization (WHO) has determined this year's theme as “Access to Services: Mental Health in Disasters and Emergencies.” The theme draws attention to the importance of individuals being able to protect their mental health and access support services during periods of increasing global instability.
Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, NPİSTANBUL Board Chairman and Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan made evaluations regarding psychological resilience in crises.
Psychological resilience in times of crisis
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that the intensity of modern life drags people into mental fatigue and that this situation leads to accumulations unknowingly, saying, "One of the biggest harmful behaviors of our age is intense and routine life. People are in a social intensity, and this situation is not noticed much. They should tell themselves to stop, think, and start over."
Emphasizing the importance of risk analysis in crisis management, Prof. Dr. Tarhan said, “The most critical point in crisis management is to be prepared for the crisis. If a person is prepared for a crisis, they can manage it very easily. If not, they panic. For example, it is one of the very weak aspects of Eastern societies. For instance, when there is a crisis, we manage it, we save it, but our preparation for preventing the crisis is not sufficient. There is no risk analysis and risk management. Therefore, if you do risk analysis and risk management before a crisis, you will manage that crisis well. This is, of course, related to wisdom." he stated.
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that psychological resilience in times of crisis is a skill that humans can learn and develop, saying, “Crises should be seen as a resilience training. Every difficulty experienced is an opportunity for a person to realize their inner strength.”
“One should return to factory settings from time to time”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that just as a device returns to its factory settings, individuals should "refresh" themselves at regular intervals, adding, “This is the key to living a healthier, more productive, and peaceful life. Controllable stress develops a person."
Stating that humans are the only beings aware of their own existence and thus possess free will, Prof. Dr. Tarhan said that this free will imposes on the individual the responsibility of setting goals, creating future projections, and reviewing strategies.
“Our brain has the ability to program itself. If we don't program ourselves, external events program us. Refreshing ourselves is actually programming and updating ourselves," said Prof. Dr. Tarhan, drawing attention to the importance of using life productively and leaving a meaningful past in this context.
“People living in the past cannot be happy and peaceful”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan drew attention to the importance of the philosophy of "living in the moment, not living for the moment," saying, “People who live with regrets in the past or carry excessive anxieties about the future cannot be peaceful. People are crushed under the words 'if only' and 'I wonder.' A peaceful person evaluates the past, learns lessons, looks to the future, makes plans, but lives today in harmony with themselves. Therefore, the phrase 'to live in harmony with oneself' expresses the word 'peace' very well.”
Accepting and managing pain
“Even in the worst environment, a person can achieve peace. To achieve peace is not to escape from pain, from the negative. It is to take the positive and negative together, learn lessons from them, and do something positive,” said Prof. Dr. Tarhan, emphasizing the importance of being resilient in the face of difficulties.
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that a person will find peace when they grasp their "ideal self," and for this, they must embark on an inner journey and get to know themselves.
‘Wellbeing’ (state of well-being)
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that managing the brain's serotonin-releasing "relaxing emotional state" together with active and secure emotionality is peace, and that this is called "subjective well-being" or, as it is known in the literature, "Wellbeing" (state of well-being).
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that well-being is psychological comfort and goodness, and when combined with physical health, true peace emerges, emphasizing that the prerequisite for tranquility and calmness is acceptance by saying, "You will accept, acceptance is not surrender. You will accept the wrongs, but you will manage them."
“The measure of gratitude is contentment...”
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that peace is related to appreciating what one has and that contentment is related to the feeling of satisfaction, saying, "The measure of gratitude is contentment. A person who is content is grateful. Being able to be happy with small things. When you achieve this, you fulfill the conceptual meaning of the feeling of gratitude."
“The feeling of gratitude makes a person feel good and leads to peace,” said Prof. Dr. Tarhan, stating that being aware of basic blessings upon waking up in the morning, eliminating negative thoughts, and being happy with routine things are the keys to achieving peace.
Mental and emotional maturity
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that spiritual growth has two important pillars: mental and emotional maturity, saying, “Mental maturity refers to aspects related to academic success such as logic, reasoning, analysis, speech, and calculation. The emotional dimension, on the other hand, is more related to a person's inner success. When these two go hand in hand in a balanced way, maturity emerges."
Prof. Dr. Tarhan emphasized that our education system largely measures mental maturity, but behavioral and emotional maturity remain insufficient.
“Maturity is something learned”
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that maturity is not achieved with age but is learned and acquired through a process, saying, "Maturation is not an instantaneous state; it is a lifelong process. Therefore, maturation is not a destination, but a journey."
Prof. Dr. Tarhan said that learning from mistakes is the greatest characteristic of a mature person, and intelligent people learn from the mistakes of others and do not repeat the same mistakes.
Sense of responsibility and narcissism epidemic
Emphasizing that people who only think about being beneficial to themselves are selfish, Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that individuals have responsibilities towards the society they live in, their families, their homeland, and their Creator.
Criticizing the capitalist system and existentialist philosophy for dragging people into selfishness, Prof. Dr. Tarhan said, "Narcissism is becoming an epidemic. What causes this is the change in our philosophy of life. Therefore, we must first correct ourselves, and then our children."
Prof. Dr. Tarhan explained that the purpose of life is not selfishness, chasing pleasure, or being a narcissist, saying, “Mistakes are instructors, and criticism is a gift. Being open to criticism requires self-confidence and is a sign of maturity.”
Humans mature by living, not by aging
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that humans mature by living, not by aging, and progress on this path by continuously developing themselves, adding that one of the obstacles to maturation is complaining, and people should learn to see the positive aspects.
“Reason is a compass for us. But it is necessary to combine reason with the heart. Reason cannot see everything. The distance reason can see is limited. But if we include emotions, intuitive perceptions occur," said Prof. Dr. Tarhan, concluding his words by emphasizing the importance of being open to criticism and having a pluralistic liberal perspective.