In an ideal world, Larissa would be invited to speak at freshman orientation at every college in this country. Not just about "rape" but about perseverance, perspective and resilience.
BTW this Boomer is perfectly happy to get out of the way. I would rather see GenX'ers running for President and Congress this year than anyone older than me
I recently heard that 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘢 "overwhelms our coping mechanisms and leaves us different than how we were before". As in it literally changes how our brains function, and that if left "buried" or "unattended", it becomes (metaphorically) like an abscess in our bodies. Celeste's desire to chip away at hers almost immediately, by being honest with her acquaintance, is very impressive (although probably somewhat uncommon).
I’m not sure that it’s that uncommon. It’s just that we don’t hear about it. There are lots of military service members who have terrible experiences and don’t get PTSD. Resilience promotion was my area of research for a bit. There’s a whole separate concept of post-traumatic growth, which I would guess is especially common in this little media ecosystem.
The definitions are subjective, but if you look at this study, most people (~90%) have had an event that meets the threshold for being called traumatic, but lifetime PTSD prevalence was still only 8% (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24151000/).
The sort of shrieking performative victimhood you’re thinking of is probably very effective at getting attention, but it is not that representative of the sum total of human experience.
I actually like the definition of trauma as something that overwhelms our coping mechanisms and leaves us different than how we were before (~Dr Paul Conti). When I looked up the definition of trauma online, I was taken directly to a PTSD page on the ncbi website. —It seems to me that (1) people can experience trauma and not know they've been traumatized, and (2) people can develop PTSD symptoms from events not related to sexual/ physical violence. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/box/part1_ch3.box16/
Larissa's response struck me as uncommon simply because it seemed like a much harder thing to do than to make up some alternative story, out of social convenience, in order to spare both her acquaintance and herself some minor discomfiture. By being honest, she sacrificed that minor comfort and, presumably, (I have no idea), acted in a positive way that confronted her experience, rather than avoiding it.
As far as victimhood culture goes, I wasn't really even thinking of that. It's hard to tell online what is performative and what is genuine, as a general rule—especially when strong emotions are involved. Because I'm with you: replicable science has the final word here. (And I'm open to having my folk-psychological notions disproved.)
Great episode! I’m late (as always) but I just wanted to say I LOVED this discussion and this guest. In a news week where I’m being pounded by non-stop Candace Owens coverage, I’m happy I have a place to find truly impressive women having important conversations. Thank the lord for Hell!
My position has always been that women are incredibly fragile, so I empathize with Italian doctors who don’t want to do a rape kit. I refuse to do any sort of gynecological exam as part of my practice. In med school, I asked for extra help in learning that particular skill, using some rather clever misdirection to avoid telling them too much of “my story”. While I have other criticisms of the school, they at least stepped up to the plate and honored that request.
Nonetheless, I still remember when I was working ED night shift during the peak COVID era and there was some room number mixup and I accidentally burst into the room of a patient who was not mine and who was there for a rape exam. Thankfully, she was still clothed, but I still felt quite mortified about it.
I have tried to rate this podcast on the Apple Podcast app many times but the option for rating never appears. I think it may have something to do with the Substack process which pushes the podcast to your preferred podcast app as the rating option also does not appear for other podcasts I setup through substack. Has anyone else found this issue?
Oh, that's weird. I was just noticing that the reviews seem to have dropped off lately. I just tried it on my Apple Podcast app and it seems to be working, but the app is not connected to Substack in any way.
If I follow the podcast through Apple, the rating option does show up. But I’m a paid subscriber so I can only get the paid subscriber feed through Substack.
Which means your paid subscribers have to download both versions in order to give you a rating, which is kind of a pain. Maybe you can bring this issue to substack tech support?
This was brilliant. Loved it!
Excellent conversation.
In an ideal world, Larissa would be invited to speak at freshman orientation at every college in this country. Not just about "rape" but about perseverance, perspective and resilience.
Great discussion and essay! Thank you.
BTW this Boomer is perfectly happy to get out of the way. I would rather see GenX'ers running for President and Congress this year than anyone older than me
You girls have been on fire lately—so many incredible guests! This episode gave me chills, & I was inspired by Larissa’s good humor.
Great discussion!
I recently heard that 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘢 "overwhelms our coping mechanisms and leaves us different than how we were before". As in it literally changes how our brains function, and that if left "buried" or "unattended", it becomes (metaphorically) like an abscess in our bodies. Celeste's desire to chip away at hers almost immediately, by being honest with her acquaintance, is very impressive (although probably somewhat uncommon).
I’m not sure that it’s that uncommon. It’s just that we don’t hear about it. There are lots of military service members who have terrible experiences and don’t get PTSD. Resilience promotion was my area of research for a bit. There’s a whole separate concept of post-traumatic growth, which I would guess is especially common in this little media ecosystem.
The definitions are subjective, but if you look at this study, most people (~90%) have had an event that meets the threshold for being called traumatic, but lifetime PTSD prevalence was still only 8% (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24151000/).
The sort of shrieking performative victimhood you’re thinking of is probably very effective at getting attention, but it is not that representative of the sum total of human experience.
I actually like the definition of trauma as something that overwhelms our coping mechanisms and leaves us different than how we were before (~Dr Paul Conti). When I looked up the definition of trauma online, I was taken directly to a PTSD page on the ncbi website. —It seems to me that (1) people can experience trauma and not know they've been traumatized, and (2) people can develop PTSD symptoms from events not related to sexual/ physical violence. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/box/part1_ch3.box16/
Larissa's response struck me as uncommon simply because it seemed like a much harder thing to do than to make up some alternative story, out of social convenience, in order to spare both her acquaintance and herself some minor discomfiture. By being honest, she sacrificed that minor comfort and, presumably, (I have no idea), acted in a positive way that confronted her experience, rather than avoiding it.
As far as victimhood culture goes, I wasn't really even thinking of that. It's hard to tell online what is performative and what is genuine, as a general rule—especially when strong emotions are involved. Because I'm with you: replicable science has the final word here. (And I'm open to having my folk-psychological notions disproved.)
*Larissa (sorry Larissa)
That was a really great one. Thanks, you two.
Fantastic episode!
FIRST!!!
Literally easier to get in on the 2000-post weekly B&R threads first than to arrive first at one of these.
i need to monitor emails better...
I'll second everyone below who said this was a GREAT episode. Loved loved loved it. Please do more with awesome guests like this!
Great episode! I’m late (as always) but I just wanted to say I LOVED this discussion and this guest. In a news week where I’m being pounded by non-stop Candace Owens coverage, I’m happy I have a place to find truly impressive women having important conversations. Thank the lord for Hell!
My position has always been that women are incredibly fragile, so I empathize with Italian doctors who don’t want to do a rape kit. I refuse to do any sort of gynecological exam as part of my practice. In med school, I asked for extra help in learning that particular skill, using some rather clever misdirection to avoid telling them too much of “my story”. While I have other criticisms of the school, they at least stepped up to the plate and honored that request.
Nonetheless, I still remember when I was working ED night shift during the peak COVID era and there was some room number mixup and I accidentally burst into the room of a patient who was not mine and who was there for a rape exam. Thankfully, she was still clothed, but I still felt quite mortified about it.
Great guest and conversation as always!
I have tried to rate this podcast on the Apple Podcast app many times but the option for rating never appears. I think it may have something to do with the Substack process which pushes the podcast to your preferred podcast app as the rating option also does not appear for other podcasts I setup through substack. Has anyone else found this issue?
Oh, that's weird. I was just noticing that the reviews seem to have dropped off lately. I just tried it on my Apple Podcast app and it seems to be working, but the app is not connected to Substack in any way.
If I follow the podcast through Apple, the rating option does show up. But I’m a paid subscriber so I can only get the paid subscriber feed through Substack.
Which means your paid subscribers have to download both versions in order to give you a rating, which is kind of a pain. Maybe you can bring this issue to substack tech support?
Excellent guest. Another great example of a truly strong woman.