Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan attended the “Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine 2nd National Psychiatry Congress” organized by İstanbul Üniversitesi Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine and Cerrahpaşa Psychiatry Club. At the congress themed ‘Human and Emotions,’ Tarhan delivered a presentation titled “Examination of Happiness from an Emotional and Psychiatric Perspective.” Noting that defining one's purpose in life and managing expectations play an important role in personality development, Tarhan stated that one must pursue meaning to be happy. Tarhan also reminded that empathy skills are necessary to establish healthy relationships; “Arrogant, narcissistic individuals who see themselves as gods on earth cannot be happy. A person experiencing many emotions needs to keep the wheel of emotions balanced…” he said.
“Hedonistic happiness replaced meaningful happiness…”
At the congress hosted by Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine, Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that defining one's purpose in life and managing expectations are very important in personality development; “A person without expectations leaves themselves to the influence of events, but someone with a future projection can do very important things regarding their future. This is something that comes historically. There are two definitions of happiness developed by Aristotle. The first is pursuing pleasure, the second is pursuing meaning. To be happy in life, one must pursue meaning. With modernism, especially in the 1900s – 2000s, hedonistic happiness replaced meaningful happiness due to the capitalist system's glorification of consumption. Now, in the 21st century, meaningful happiness has come to the forefront much more in a person's well-being. The emergence of neuroscience contributed to this. With the emergence of neuroscience, brain sciences, a psychiatry revolution occurred,” he stated.
Material well-being is separate, meaningful well-being is separate…
Tarhan underlined that happiness cannot be bought with money; “The capitalist system does not care about human happiness. It doesn't matter if people produce but aren't happy. There is an imperialist system. They don't think about people's happiness. It's a system that thinks more about earning, serving worldly ambition. In the USA, per capita gross national product has risen, but happiness has gone down. Rightfully, there's a saying for this; ‘Money cannot buy happiness.’ This saying holds true. In Turkey, its equivalent is, ‘There is no bliss with money.’ This means material well-being is separate, and meaningful well-being is separate. Meaningful well-being is considered spiritual well-being. In other words, a person who can achieve this well-being is happy. When a person focuses on material well-being but does not focus on meaningful well-being, they cannot be happy in this way,” he said.
Is the universe a simulation?
Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that after the relativity of matter was proven, the relativity of time emerged; “Einstein discovered the relativity of matter. This is already proven knowledge. Now, like the relativity of time, the relativity of matter has also emerged. This means a photon 100 million light-years away in the universe and a photon here can communicate independently of time and space. This is called photon theory. Thus, the human brain works in connection with the universe. Currently, the most active research is on consciousness studies. In these consciousness studies, questions such as ‘Is the human brain an interface between mind and brain? Are we living in a simulation? Is the universe currently a simulation?’ have become an area seriously researched by science. This has also been a revolutionary study in psychiatry,” he said.
“The frontal lobe provides the balance of the male and female brain”
Prof. Dr. Tarhan spoke about the emotional differences between the male and female heart; “The left brain is male, the right brain is female. The left brain, the male brain, is related to logic, reasoning, analysis, thinking, calculation. Emotions, excitements, music, art, aesthetics are related to the right brain. The frontal brain provides the balance for both. That is, the frontal lobe also provides the balance of the male brain and the female brain. This is innate; men use their rational brain, while women use their emotional brain. As the balance between logic and emotion matures, both can be achieved,” he stated.
The biggest consequence of narcissism is loneliness…
Prof. Dr. Tarhan drew attention to loneliness becoming an epidemic; “While humanity became so free, narcissism also increased. A narcissistic personality is a personality type that places itself at the center of the world. It sees itself as special, important, and superior. In England, the biggest consequence of narcissism emerged as loneliness. That's why the Ministry of Loneliness was established in England. When people only think about their own interests, they cannot maintain relationships. Divorces are increasing. The World Health Organization states three dangers awaiting the future. The first is global income inequality, the second is climate change, and the third is loneliness. In other words, there is a situation where it is becoming an epidemic. Currently, especially in Northern Europe, the rate of out-of-wedlock births is over 50 percent. This is a global problem related to loneliness. That is, single-parent households are rapidly multiplying. Household fragility is increasing,” he said.
Being able to keep the wheel of emotions balanced is important for happiness…
Tarhan underlined that individuals who succeed in remaining calm under stress rotate their wheel of emotions in a healthy way; “Humankind does not go in a straight line in life. It can change over time. Individuals who succeed in remaining calm under stress rotate their wheel of emotions in a healthy way. Because no one stays in the same emotion. We experience all emotions on certain days, at certain times, during certain events. This is a natural situation, but the whole point is to manage it in a balanced way. There is a time to be angry, and there is a time to control anger. What is important for happiness and success is that all of these are in harmony,” he said.
“One must have empathy skills to establish healthy relationships”
Tarhan stated that when all evils are gathered, the door to them is opened by a lack of empathy; “There is Martin Seligman's PERMA Model. The first part of that model is positive emotion; if you want to be happy, it's important to be able to stay in a positive emotional state in any environment. To experience the same happiness in a palace or in prison. Just like there are flowers that bloom in every season. Pure, genuine happiness. To achieve authentic happiness. Those who invest can learn this. Secondly, the flow state. A person loses themselves in a subject. They say 'you work too much,' and they reply, 'I'm not working, I'm doing what I love.' People don't get tired when they do what they love. Love what you do, or do what you love. Thirdly, establishing healthy relationships. People who can establish healthy relationships live happier lives. To establish healthy relationships, one must have empathy skills. If you gather all evils, lack of empathy opens their door. Lack of empathy exists in arrogant, narcissistic individuals who see themselves as gods on earth. Such people cannot be happy. The fourth step of the PERMA Model is meaning. If someone wants to be happy, they must certainly be a part of a meaning. Within meaning, there is purpose. If a person has no purpose, they cannot grasp meaning. Meaning is the most important parameter in a person's life. Pursuing meaning is very important. And fifth is having small achievements. Dopamine is secreted in the brain when heading towards a big achievement. You wake up in the morning, you give thanks. The brain secretes dopamine, and you suddenly relax and feel at ease,” he stated.
For happiness, self-actualization is not enough; one must also transcend…
Prof. Dr. Tarhan emphasized that for a person to be happy, they must transcend themselves; “There is Maslow's Hierarchy of Psychosocial Needs. This is always incompletely stated. At the very bottom are eating, drinking, reproduction, shelter. At the very top is self-actualization. Maslow placed self-transcendence at the very top, the act of transcending oneself. For a person to be happy, self-actualization is not enough. They need to transcend themselves. They do good for their family, for others. They make others happy and become happy themselves. The feeling of self-transcendence is very important. To manage emotions, one needs to manage the source of emotions well. The source of emotion is psychological capital. Managing our emotional capital correctly leads us to happiness. Being a good person is the rent for our existence. It is a rent for being human, for our existence. It means appreciating what we have,” he concluded.
Photo: Sevde Korkut
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