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Johann Hari (Chasing the Scream, Lost Connections) sits down with Bridget to discuss the rise in depression, anxiety and addiction in society, particularly during Covid, and what that means about their underlying causes. Through extensive traveling and research for his books, Johann has explored the idea that the roots of all three are not just biological, but also psychological and social, and that we need a more complex approach to treatment in order to address all three aspects of these ailments. In a deep and wide-ranging conversation, they discuss loneliness, tribalism, how Portugal solved its heroin crisis, how Cambodians treat depression, the rising wealth disparity in our society, how junk values have taken over our lives, homelessness, competitive victimhood, and why social media is to having a social life what porn is to having sex.
Years ago, I never tired of asking anyone who would sit still long enough some variation on the following question: Suppose you had to choose between having a strong and alert mind but with severe physical limitations (e.g., wheelchair-bound), or a perfectly healthy body and yet be as dumb as a bag of nails. Which would you choose? There was no right or wrong answer as far as I was concerned, though my own preference was for mental acuity. I simply wanted to hear the preferences and thoughts of people I found interesting.