Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: "Zero stress means heading towards extinction..."

Founding Rector of Üsküdar University, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, met with his readers at the 9th Üsküdar Book Fair. Tarhan, who gave a talk titled 'Stress from Individual to Society' at the highly attended event, stated that zero stress means heading towards extinction. Tarhan emphasized that anti-stress attitudes lead to the globalization of laziness, and the flourishing and spread of comfortism, and stated that complaining, vengefulness, and whining are the things that increase stress the most.

Interest in Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan was very high at the 9th Üsküdar Book Fair, held between February 16-25 at the Bağlarbaşı Congress and Culture Center.

First, a talk titled "Stress from Individual to Society" was held, moderated by Journalist Şaban Özdemir. In the talk held at the Eurasia Hall, Tarhan made evaluations on stress and how it can be managed.

Tarhan stated that stress can be managed when acting in accordance with the speed and rhythm of nature, and also emphasized that we need to understand our brain to manage stress.

"Zero stress means heading towards extinction"

Drawing attention to the fact that the impact of stress on people has been understood more in recent years, Founding Rector of Üsküdar Üniversitesi, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan emphasized the importance of managing stress rather than overcoming it. Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said; "Some say 'overcome stress,' but overcoming stress is neither correct nor possible. Stress can cause our body to be a source of energy. An energy source becomes possible by managing stress. Zero stress means heading towards extinction. Some colleagues who do not understand human psychology say, 'Run from stress, live your life, you only live once. If you have marriage problems, the family is not sacred, you are sacred. The individual is sacred, live as you please, you only live once.' There are currently erroneous medical recommendations advocating for no stress. As a result, someone who avoids struggle, energy, and self-motivation emerges, leading to the globalization of laziness. Currently, this anti-stress attitude causes the globalization of laziness, and the flourishing and spread of comfortism. Therefore, the word stress is a resource. It is necessary to manage this resource."

"A person who wants to manage stress will have a life purpose"

Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that managing monetary resources in economics is similar to managing psychological and social capital; "The word 'iktisat' (economy) comes from the Arabic root 'maksat' (purpose). This means that if a person has a purpose, they can manage their economy, manage money. A child should learn money management by the age of 10. If not, after entering adolescence, an egocentric child emerges who wants everything and expects only their desires to be fulfilled. One of the reasons for the globalization of narcissism is closely related to people's inability to manage their psychological and social resources. Therefore, a person who wants to manage stress will have a life purpose. There will be a purpose for which one will labor, get tired, endure hardship, a purpose that transcends oneself. Whoever has this purpose can manage their stress and turn that stress into a gain."

"If you can act in accordance with the speed and rhythm of nature, it means you can manage your stress"

Tarhan stated that controlled stress is beneficial, while uncontrollable stress is harmful; "Life, like riding a bicycle, is at a certain tempo. You need to know where to speed up and where to slow down. If you can act in accordance with the speed and rhythm of nature, it means you can manage your stress. That is, you need to know where to accelerate and where to stop. Controlled stress is beneficial for us to use our stress source, energy source, intellectual energy, and mental energy efficiently and controllably. Uncontrolled stress, however, is harmful. It is the dosage that makes a medicine a medicine, and a poison a poison. Stress in its proper dose is beneficial, excessive stress is harmful. The brain secretes acidic chemicals, which we call the '5 Horsemen of Darkness.' These are emotions like arrogance, anger, jealousy, hatred, hostility. If these emotions exist, acidic chemicals are secreted. Our energy sources are activated. Sympathetic activation occurs. As energy sources are activated, blood sugar rises, fats in the blood rise, vascular resistance rises, blood pressure rises, heart rate increases, attention increases, learning speed increases. If this lasts for a few hours, it whips the body."

"Managing our stress is very closely related to understanding our brain"

Prof. Dr. Tarhan stated that complaining, vengefulness, and whining are the things that increase stress the most; "The bodies of people who pursue negative thoughts always work under stress. Their immune systems collapse early, and they get cancer at an early age. Another reason for getting cancer at an early age is diseases caused by stress hormones in the body suppressing the immune system, which are generated by negative thinking. All of these are scientifically verified because they have been proven. The treatment method that measures brain functions is now a global reality. It has become global knowledge. Managing our stress is very closely related to understanding our brain..."

What is the relationship between stress and personality type?

Tarhan stated that a study on stress identified 3 personality types; "Type A personality, Type B personality, and Type C personality have been identified. Type A personalities are hurried, impatient, want to live fast, and are perfectionists. These people cut across lanes while driving. They are also known as hyperactive individuals. The heart attack rate in such individuals is 3 times higher. Heart, stomach, and intestinal disorders are 3 times more common compared to Type B personalities. A part of these individuals' brains says 'let it be perfect,' and another part says 'let it be now.' They make their brains like a sandwich. Since there is constant stress in the brain, there is constant tension. The modern system first makes you sick, then treats you. A fast-paced life, a success-oriented life, a consumption-oriented life, a frantic life, lead to an increase in global suicide and depression violence incidents. As a result, new types of antidepressants emerged while searching for remedies for treatment."

"What makes an event stressful is not the event itself, but our reaction to it"

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, talking about the cockroach syndrome, said that what makes an event stressful is related to the reaction given. Tarhan; "A lady was sitting in a restaurant when a cockroach landed on her. The woman screamed when she saw the cockroach, trying to throw it off. The cockroach immediately went to another lady, who also violently screamed and shouted. A waiter came, the cockroach stuck to the waiter, and the waiter calmly took the cockroach with a napkin and threw it into an outdoor container. The cockroach was the same cockroach, but the reactions were different. Stress is something like this. Like the reaction to the cockroach, what makes an event stressful is not the event itself, but our reaction to it. If we react in an exaggerated way, like we did to the cockroach, we will see every event as a threat. However, if we 'Stop, think, manage' in an event, that event will not be stressful for us."

"As goodness is done, evils disappear by themselves"

Tarhan, speaking about third-generation psychotherapies, drew attention to gratitude and thankfulness modules. Tarhan; "In the gratitude module, we have people write a letter of gratitude. We have them write a thank you letter to someone who did them a favor in the past. We teach ways to be happy with small and ordinary things. In the thankfulness module, we tell them to go buy a gift for someone who did them a favor in the past. 'Why did you bring me a gift?' they ask, and the person replies; 'Because you did me a favor in the past.' A wonderful friendship blossoms. These are all positive interactions. That's why the characteristic of negative things creates an excessive alarm in the brain compared to positive things. For positive things, effort, endeavor, and investment are needed; this is called psychological entropy, behavioral entropy. If good and correct behaviors increase, evils in society automatically decrease. The best method to fight evil is like fighting darkness. If we want to fight darkness, when a candlelight is lit, darkness disappears by itself. As goodness is done, evils disappear by themselves. Therefore, the best method to fight evil is to do good directly. The better a person you become, and the more good and beautiful things you enable people to do, rest assured that your surroundings will become beautiful, and life will become beautiful, without you even realizing it."

"To be a good person is to pay the rent for our existence"

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that there are both positives and negatives in life, said that what is important is to be able to manage events correctly. Tarhan; "If you want to be happy, first you will cleanse your heart and intentions, and you will make doing good and beautiful things your ego ideal. To be a good person is to pay the rent for our existence. As Rumi said, we are not living in this world, we are passing through it, so what is truly important is to accumulate good and beautiful things at the end of our journey in this world... Achieving happiness is like chasing a colorful shadow. A person tries to catch their shadow but cannot. Happiness and comfort are like a colorful shadow; the more you try to catch them, the more they elude you. Comfort is the same. In this life, there are certainly positives and negatives, but what is important is to be able to manage the events that come your way correctly."

"Most psychiatric illnesses are epigenetic mechanisms..."

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that for a thought to become epigenetic information, emotion must be added to that thought, and when emotion is added to a thought, it turns into a belief. Tarhan; "Later-learned behaviors create a genetic conformism. Now, because there are changes in that person's genes, they learn something from the gene. The brain gives the same reaction to the same event, making it an automatic response. Automatic positive thought or automatic negative thought, these are also called mental rumination. The person does this epigenetically without realizing, knowing, or thinking. For example, while driving, you do many different things. You talk on the phone, you do things, but at the same time you are driving because an epigenetic mechanism has formed in the brain by repeatedly driving. In computer terms, the brain creates shortcuts, but it has coded this genetically so that it doesn't learn anew every time. In continuously performed tasks, the brain creates shortcuts, and we do some things automatically. For these shortcuts to be produced in our brain, repetition is necessary. For a thought to become epigenetic information, emotion must be added to that thought. When emotion is added to a thought, that thought turns into a belief. Turning into a belief is like pressing the enter key on a computer. When repeated, it becomes a habit. This repetition varies according to personality structure; it takes eight weeks for some people, six months for others. On average, in 5-6 months, that action becomes that person's personality. Most psychiatric illnesses are epigenetic mechanisms... Personality changes, addiction, illnesses become permanent in the brain. You cannot perform therapy without correcting them, without treating that person, because therapy cannot be applied without correcting the biological infrastructure."

"Life gives its reward to those who can endure"

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, emphasizing the importance of two skills in combating stress, provided information about delayed gratification and resilience training. Tarhan; "Someone who is resilient to stress and does not give up emerges stronger. Life gives its reward to those who can endure; those who endure emerge stronger from this resilience training and become more resistant to life's events, manage stress better, and do not panic in the face of events. For example, there are 'sponge-type' people; these people absorb stress, soak it up, always cry, always complain, always worry, they have negative energy. When you talk to them, they are always sad, troubled, reproachful, always make snide remarks, they are negative people. It is very difficult to live with such people. Another personality type is the 'Teflon personality'. These are narcissistic individuals and are the most dangerous. They do not burn themselves but burn those they come into contact with. Since these individuals lack mental flexibility, when a major trauma occurs, they experience narcissistic injury and immediately commit suicide." He said.

Israel acts with a 'Teflon Type' characteristic in Gaza…

Tarhan, evaluating the events in Gaza as political narcissism, said, "There is narcissism there... They do not see people as human beings. There is a cruel, brutal thing happening that the whole world is watching. Global conscience is undergoing a great test. In this test of global conscience, if there is a political Teflon type, the best example is exactly what the state of Israel is doing right now. Such individuals, after a while, break and scatter under excessive pressure because they do not flex. That is why, in history, in such situations, people without mental flexibility can endure up to a certain strength and then break and scatter. The third type is normal rubber-type people. They are flexible, they take events, they flex, they manage them, and they express them again. Rubber-type people can manage stress. Do not be Teflon, do not be a sponge; the ideal is rubber stress management."

"Experiences are psychological capital for us"

Prof. Dr. Tarhan, stating that older generations matured in scarcity, while new generations are trying to mature in abundance; "It is necessary to understand why a child experiences stress. We need to put ourselves in the child's shoes. The important thing in stress management is to view stress as a threat; stress is a form of energy. Think of nuclear energy like electrical energy; it illuminates here, but if you give too much, the fuses blow, if too little, it doesn't illuminate, just like that... Older generations matured in scarcity, while new generations are maturing in abundance. Maturing in abundance is not easy. Especially families currently try not to deny their children anything, in which case children obtain many things easily. There are 2 types of pleasure in life: one is short-term pleasure, and the other is medium-to-long-term pleasure. Children and young people think about short-term, immediate pleasure. If they put in some effort, sweat, get tired, what will happen in three, five, ten years? Then they will have greater opportunities. The sweating, getting tired, and sacrifices made now are an investment. Experiences are psychological capital for us. Experiences are a gift today, an investment for the future. If you don't invest in the future, you will have a random life in the future, events will control you. If a young person wants to invest in the future, they should start that investment today. They should set their goal, and the efforts they make today while progressing towards this goal are an investment that will bear fruit for them in the future."