Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, participated in an online symposium organized by the Ekin and Nesil Association as part of the Conscious Youth and Healthy Generation Project. Tarhan gave a presentation titled “Food for the Soul.” Stating that the inner struggle can be won by managing malevolent impulses, Tarhan said that the solution to fighting evil must begin with oneself. Tarhan said, “If we manage the malevolent impulses within ourselves and replace them with benevolent impulses, we will win the inner struggle within our inner world.”
The biggest sign that we are experiencing social decay…
Pointing out the increasing social decay in society, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said: “When home is not a safe space, children insecurely enter digital platforms and encounter information inappropriate for their age. There is an increase in substance use and suicides among young people. The USA leads in this regard. However, Turkey has become the second country in the world using the most antidepressants after America. There is another interesting statistic. This year, for the first time in Turkey's history, the birth rate has fallen so low, below two. This is the biggest sign that we are experiencing social decay. We must raise our youth to be individuals who will serve the future, save the future, to whom we can entrust the future, and who will learn from past events. We need to use technology for good and right purposes. The digital sphere is also an opportunity. We must evaluate this opportunity well, correctly, and beautifully.”
“The global system has changed our values”
Pointing out the changes created by the global system, Tarhan said: “Let's raise young people to be individuals who can call wrong wrong, live with dignity and honor, and have strong values. The global system has also changed our values. One of the things the global system has done is the consumer economy, neoliberal economics. In the neoliberal system, the strong crush the weak, the rich don't care about the poor, and young people are left to their own devices, using drugs. The Western system is more balanced because it regulated itself in response to socialism. Currently, because there is serious social decay, our legal system and social structure are not functioning well. There is a remedy for these. Let's not be pessimistic at all. If we cannot make the correct diagnosis, we cannot apply the correct treatment. If we make the correct diagnosis, there is treatment, there is a solution, and there is a formula…”
“Consumer culture has also consumed our relationships”
Speaking about narcissism, Tarhan said: “It is useful to analyze what narcissism is. Narcissism is commonly known as the 'disease of grandeur.' Narcissistic individuals have fundamental characteristics. They exaggerate their own abilities. They always want to be respected. They thrive on praise. They always blame others for their mistakes. They think in terms of external causes. They do not question or blame themselves. They are closed to criticism. Consumer culture has multiplied this personality type. In consumer culture, the wheel of 'Earn, consume' turns. You will buy more, wear brands, live in the most luxurious places, and own more things. This is the philosophy of consumer culture. Consumer culture has also consumed our relationships. It has consumed humanity's psychological capital. In the fantasy worlds of these individuals, there is power, success, fame, money, beauty, and love. They always think about these. Whatever topic is discussed most in a family, that is the sacred thing for that family. Whatever we love with our hearts, that is our sacred. Narcissistic people play a very good role of sincerity. They play humble roles. These individuals have significantly increased. The reason for this is modernism.”
“In the fight against evil, we will start the solution with ourselves”
Stating that the inner struggle can be won by managing malevolent impulses, Tarhan said: “In the fight against evil, we will start the solution with ourselves. A parent will start with themselves, not their child. A teacher will start with themselves. If we manage the malevolent impulses within ourselves and replace them with benevolent impulses, we will win the inner struggle within our inner world. A person can fall into depression, or feel constrained. In our culture, this is called 'jihad of sorrow.' That is, a person feels sad, suffers, and has to be patient. In such situations, if they do not cut their bond with Allah, what they do comes back as a reward. In psychology, this is called 'post-traumatic growth.' The person emerges from the trauma stronger and more developed. Therefore, we should create opportunities for education, change ourselves based on the events we experience, and be good examples. The spread of good is slow, the spread of evil is viral. Let's do what we can in our own field. Let's not despair.”
Three different reactions to threat: Fight, flight, and freeze…
Explaining the brain's reactions to threat, Tarhan said: “Our brain reacts to threat in three ways. The fight, flight, and freeze responses. In the fight response, there is autonomic sympathetic activation. Shoulder, neck, and back muscles contract, and vascular resistance increases. Blood pressure rises. Stomach and intestinal muscles contract. The body stops digestion and tenses up. Some people have a flight response. In the flight response, blood pressure drops, and the person faints. Or sudden cardiac deaths occur. There are those who die suddenly because of fear. Because the brain secretes excessive chemicals, blood pressure suddenly drops to zero, and sudden death occurs. There is also the freeze response. People staring blankly on a bridge during wars are like this. That is, they freeze, the brain no longer receives new messages. It shuts itself down. Freezing occurs. This is also a reaction to stress. Let's not be afraid of stress. Let's be afraid of not being able to manage stress. Stress is our body's demand for growth. We learn something after every stressful event. The person emerges from these events stronger and more developed.”
“What is good for the heart is also good for the brain”
Reminding what needs to be done for a healthy life, Tarhan said: “For a healthy life, eating habits and lifestyle habits are very important. For example, obesity has the highest rate in the world in America. Saudi Arabia is second, and Turkey is third. Our eating habits are very important. We need to accustom our children to balanced nutrition from a young age. Balanced and moderate. Eat everything, but eat little. For health, what is good for the heart is also good for the brain. That is, you will eat little, and you will eat everything. Ibn-i Sina actually gave a formula. He says, ‘Do not eat unless you are hungry, and when you eat, eat little.’ We should apply this.”
The firefighter model for dealing with anger
Referring to the points to be considered in anger management, Tarhan said: “Toxic people make you angry and cause you to make mistakes. Then they say, ‘You are always like this, always shouting.’ They try to dominate you. You fall into their trap. For example, if you encounter such a person in relationship stress, the other person tries to dominate, control, and manage you by shouting. Their war strategy is jungle law. If you enter their battlefield and start shouting like them, the strong crush the weak in jungle law. Real life is not like that. In individual stress, when you are angry, you should not make big decisions. Those who make big mistakes are those who make hasty decisions. That's why the 'foam' of anger needs to subside. I recommend approaching anger with the same firefighter model. What do you do when a fire breaks out? First, you don't investigate why the fire started. Who started it? Why did they start it? Why is there a fire here? You immediately extinguish the fire, then cool it down, and then you investigate the cause so that a fire does not break out again. Let's approach anger in the same way with the firefighter model. First, we will get rid of the anger. The best remedy for anger is to change the environment. At that moment, you extinguish the fire of this anger, you cool it down. After that, why was I angry? Which of my principles was broken? Which of my tenets was violated? If you analyze this, if you do an anger analysis, you will learn something. That anger will cause your development. For this reason, anger is actually a human emotion.”
“Those who remain insensitive on this issue are accountable”
Emphasizing the importance of being conscious about sexuality when raising children, Tarhan said: “If children are treated before the age of 12 to prevent them from becoming trans individuals or homosexuals, the solution is very easy. If they come after the age of 12, it is very difficult. If they come after the age of 18, we say, 'We are sorry.' You cannot force it after this age. If you force it, the child runs away from home and becomes worse. Therefore, a medical approach is needed for them. If the person wants treatment, it is available. If the person does not want it, it is not. If there is no justice in a family, there will be no peace in that family. If the mother favors one child and the father favors another, there will be no peace there. Parents should use a common language. The child takes both the mother's and father's language, as well as their relationship, as an example. For this reason, we need to be conscious in areas related to sexuality when raising children. Those who remain insensitive on this issue are accountable.”