Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett

Well, I want to be really clear that, again, I'm not saying people are to blame. Culpability and responsibility are not the same thing. Culpability is blame. Are you blameworthy? I'm not saying people are to blame for their own suffering. I'm saying that people can be more responsible. And by taking more responsibility, they could reduce their suffering some.

Well, I want to be really clear that, again, I'm not saying people are to blame. Culpability and responsibility are not the same thing. Culpability is blame. Are you blameworthy? I'm not saying people are to blame for their own suffering. I'm saying that people can be more responsible. And by taking more responsibility, they could reduce their suffering some.

That's not the same thing as saying that it's their cause to begin with. So I'll give you an example. Social contagion. Contagion is an interesting word. It means that you are infected by something. Even a virus.

That's not the same thing as saying that it's their cause to begin with. So I'll give you an example. Social contagion. Contagion is an interesting word. It means that you are infected by something. Even a virus.

There are these experiments that were done 15, 20 years ago where these are done by Sheldon Cohen, who is a psychoimmunologist, which means he's a psychologist and he studies how immunology, that is your immune system, is related to your psychological state. And so what he did across a number of experiments is he took people and he sequestered them in hotel rooms.

There are these experiments that were done 15, 20 years ago where these are done by Sheldon Cohen, who is a psychoimmunologist, which means he's a psychologist and he studies how immunology, that is your immune system, is related to your psychological state. And so what he did across a number of experiments is he took people and he sequestered them in hotel rooms.

And then he took the same dosage, the same concentration of virus, and he put it in every person's nose. And then he controlled how much they slept, how much they ate. He measured their symptoms. He weighed their tissues after they blew their nose. I mean, he did just really, really, really, really careful metrics. And across these experiments, somewhere between 20% to 40% of people

And then he took the same dosage, the same concentration of virus, and he put it in every person's nose. And then he controlled how much they slept, how much they ate. He measured their symptoms. He weighed their tissues after they blew their nose. I mean, he did just really, really, really, really careful metrics. And across these experiments, somewhere between 20% to 40% of people

became symptomatic with respiratory disease. That means the virus is necessary, but it is not sufficient to cause illness. Another necessary but not sufficient cause is the state of each person's immune system. That is, your brain and your immune system have to be in a particular state in order for you to be infected by a virus in these experiments.

became symptomatic with respiratory disease. That means the virus is necessary, but it is not sufficient to cause illness. Another necessary but not sufficient cause is the state of each person's immune system. That is, your brain and your immune system have to be in a particular state in order for you to be infected by a virus in these experiments.

So the point that I'm making here is exactly the same about suffering. So let's take anxiety, for example. You know, we, in a culture, we automatically make meaning of certain types of signal patterns as anxiety. When there's a lot of uncertainty... There's an increase in norepinephrine and some chemicals in the brain that often goes with an increase in heart rate and so on.

So the point that I'm making here is exactly the same about suffering. So let's take anxiety, for example. You know, we, in a culture, we automatically make meaning of certain types of signal patterns as anxiety. When there's a lot of uncertainty... There's an increase in norepinephrine and some chemicals in the brain that often goes with an increase in heart rate and so on.

And we automatically make meaning of this physical state as anxiety. But exactly the same physical state. Could be determination. It could be just pure uncertainty. Again, meaning making is about action, right? So when you are experiencing high arousal, even if it's super unpleasant as determination, you do something different than... if you experience it as anxiety or uncertainty.

And we automatically make meaning of this physical state as anxiety. But exactly the same physical state. Could be determination. It could be just pure uncertainty. Again, meaning making is about action, right? So when you are experiencing high arousal, even if it's super unpleasant as determination, you do something different than... if you experience it as anxiety or uncertainty.

So here's an example. There are people who experience test anxiety. Really serious test anxiety prevents people from finishing courses or graduating from college. People who graduate from college have a lifetime trajectory of earning that is hundreds of thousands of dollars more often than somebody who drops out of college. So test anxiety...

So here's an example. There are people who experience test anxiety. Really serious test anxiety prevents people from finishing courses or graduating from college. People who graduate from college have a lifetime trajectory of earning that is hundreds of thousands of dollars more often than somebody who drops out of college. So test anxiety...

Over the long run, it's more than just a bit of discomfort. It has serious implications for your earning potential across your life. There are these experiments that were done where they trained people to make sense of high arousal physical states, not as anxiety, but as determination. And these people learned to do this. First, they practice like a skill. It's like driving.

Over the long run, it's more than just a bit of discomfort. It has serious implications for your earning potential across your life. There are these experiments that were done where they trained people to make sense of high arousal physical states, not as anxiety, but as determination. And these people learned to do this. First, they practice like a skill. It's like driving.

At first, it's really hard. You have to give a lot of effort to it, but you practice, practice, practice, and then eventually it becomes really automatic. And then what happens? They're able to take tests. They're able to pass tests. They're able to continue taking courses and so on. I watched this actually happen right in front of my eyes.

At first, it's really hard. You have to give a lot of effort to it, but you practice, practice, practice, and then eventually it becomes really automatic. And then what happens? They're able to take tests. They're able to pass tests. They're able to continue taking courses and so on. I watched this actually happen right in front of my eyes.