Podcast Summary
Investing in pet health with fresh food: Fresh food leads to better pet health, including improved coat/skin, breath, digestion, and poops.
Investing in your pet's health by providing them with fresh, nutritiously balanced food can lead to better health and happier, longer lives for both you and your furry friend. The Farmer's Dog offers a solution with their human-grade, vet-recommended meals that are free from kibble and canned goo. This fresh diet can result in numerous benefits, including a healthier coat and skin, better breath, easier digestion, and smaller, better poops. Additionally, the speaker shares a personal experience of finding comfort and understanding in a group of people who have experienced loss, and how that experience has shaped their perspective on life. Ultimately, whether it's investing in your pet's health or finding solace in shared experiences, taking care of ourselves and those we love is an important aspect of living a full and happy life. Use the code "podcast" to get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com.
Content warnings and grief: Content warnings may unintentionally offend those grieving a loss by suicide, but they primarily benefit those who are suicidal. Facing and dealing with grief can be therapeutic.
Content warnings, while intended to help and protect individuals, can sometimes have unintended negative effects on those who have experienced loss by suicide. Felicia, a research scientist, shared her personal experience of feeling offended by a content warning during a time of deep mourning after her brother's suicide. She felt that the warning implied she had forgotten about suicide or that hearing about it would be more upsetting than her grief itself. However, Felicia acknowledged that content warnings may primarily benefit those who are suicidal. She also shared that even if she wanted to avoid upsetting material, predicting what would upset her was impossible. Ultimately, Felicia suggested that facing and dealing with grief, rather than avoiding it, could be therapeutic.
Trigger warnings for suicide: A complex issue: Consider the impact of trigger warnings on individuals struggling with suicidal thoughts and involve the suicide community in the conversation.
The use of trigger warnings for content related to suicide is a complex issue with valid arguments on both sides. Some people believe that trigger warnings can be helpful, while others feel that they can be trivializing or even harmful. The origins of trigger warnings are not clear, and their implementation is often decided by well-meaning individuals without input from those most directly affected. The speaker, who has personally struggled with suicidal thoughts, shares her perspective that decisions about language and storytelling in regards to suicide should come from the suicide community itself, rather than being imposed from the outside. It's important to consider the potential impact of trigger warnings on individuals who are struggling with suicidal thoughts and to involve those individuals in the conversation.
History and origins of trigger warnings: Trigger warnings have roots in informed consent in medicine and gained mainstream attention in the late 2010s. They are now common in media and education, warning audiences about potentially distressing content.
Trigger warnings have been a subject of intense debate since their introduction on college campuses, with some arguing they provide necessary protection for those with trauma or mental health issues, while others believe they coddle students and hinder their ability to cope with challenging content. The origins of trigger warnings can be traced back to the principle of informed consent in medicine, which requires individuals to be informed of potential negative consequences before engaging in a procedure or encountering content. The practice gained mainstream attention during the late 2010s, but its intellectual roots can be traced back to the 1950s and the legal principle of informed consent. Despite the ongoing debate, trigger warnings have become increasingly common in various forms of media and education, warning audiences about potentially distressing content related to suicide, sexual violence, homophobia, racism, eating disorders, and animal deaths, among other topics.
The Evolution of Consent and Content Warnings: From medical consent to Hollywood's Hays Code, and later to the Internet, consent and content warnings have evolved to help individuals make informed decisions and respect each other's boundaries.
The concepts of consent and content warnings have deep roots in various aspects of society, including medicine and entertainment. The Salgo case marked a turning point in medical consent, leading to formal procedures and paperwork. Meanwhile, the introduction of the Hays Code in Hollywood resulted in content warnings to help audiences make informed decisions about what they watched. The birth of the Internet in the late 1990s saw the emergence of trigger warnings on feminist message boards, with users requesting warnings for sensitive topics to be considerate of each other's experiences. While the initial push for these warnings didn't necessarily come from mental health experts, the concept of trigger warnings has since become associated with mental health and trauma awareness.
History of Trigger Warnings: From user-driven internet to academic settings, trigger warnings have evolved from a tool for warning about potentially upsetting content to a topic of debate and implementation
Trigger warnings, which were first used on fan fiction websites in 2003, have evolved from an attempt to provide users with information about potentially upsetting content, much like the rating systems in film and television. The user-driven nature of the internet and the abundance of rogue content led to the widespread adoption of trigger warnings on social media platforms in the mid-2000s. This eventually led to students demanding the use of trigger warnings in academic settings, starting around 2010. Notable events, such as Oberlin University's issuance of a document on trigger warnings in 2013 and a group of undergraduate students from Columbia University calling for their use in 2015, further fueled the debate around trigger warnings. Despite the controversy surrounding their use, trigger warnings continue to be a topic of discussion and implementation in various contexts.
Exploring the Impact of Trigger Warnings: Researcher Victoria Bridgeland conducted an experiment to investigate the actual effects of trigger warnings by showing two groups of people the same photos with different captions to determine if they had any impact before forming opinions
The debate over trigger warnings on college campuses reached a boiling point by 2016, with strong opinions from both sides. Some saw trigger warnings as necessary protections, while others viewed them as coddling and detrimental to mental strength. Researcher Victoria Bridgeland, however, wanted to cut through the rhetoric and investigate the actual effects of trigger warnings. Her experiment involved showing two groups of people the same photos, but with different captions – one group received a boring caption, while the other received a disturbing one. The purpose of this design was for good experimental control. Bridgeland and her team aimed to determine if trigger warnings had any impact at all before jumping to conclusions about their protective or coddling effects.
Initial studies on trigger warnings suggest no significant impact: Despite initial research, the ethical testing of trigger warnings for individuals with specific triggers in a lab remains a challenge due to the inaccuracy of test conditions representing real-life situations.
The initial studies on trigger warnings suggest they do not significantly influence the experiences of people who encounter them. These studies found that warnings did not make people feel worse or better, and did not mentally prepare them to reduce the negativity of the stimuli they were about to encounter. However, this raises the question of how to ethically test the effectiveness of trigger warnings for individuals with specific triggers in a laboratory setting. Some argue that the test conditions do not accurately represent real-life situations, as a person's reaction to a trigger depends on the specific traumatic event they have experienced. Therefore, further research is needed to fully understand the role and effectiveness of trigger warnings in various contexts.
Trigger warnings: Informed consent or ineffective protection?: Trigger warnings may not effectively protect individuals from distressing content, but they can serve as a means of informed consent, allowing individuals to make informed decisions about engaging with potentially triggering material.
Trigger warnings, as they are commonly used to prepare individuals for potentially distressing content, may not be effective for everyone. Studies have shown that even among trauma survivors, seeing a trigger warning does not necessarily help them cope with the content. Instead, trigger warnings can serve a different purpose: informed consent. People value having information about the nature of the content they are about to engage with, allowing them to make informed decisions about whether or not to proceed. However, it's important to note that triggers can be highly idiosyncratic and unpredictable, making it challenging to create warnings that capture all potential triggers. Additionally, human curiosity can sometimes lead people to seek out content despite warnings. A more effective approach might be to focus on creating safe and supportive environments for individuals to engage with potentially triggering content, rather than relying solely on warnings.
Humans engage in counter hedonistic behaviors: People sometimes seek out negative experiences and materials, contradicting the assumption that they always avoid pain
Human behavior often defies the common assumption that people seek out things that make them feel good and avoid what causes pain. Instead, humans engage in counter hedonistic behaviors, such as seeking out sadness-inducing material or deliberately triggering negative experiences. This phenomenon has been observed in various contexts, including mental health conditions like PTSD and eating disorders. For instance, some individuals with PTSD engage in self-triggering behaviors to make meaning of their negative experiences and find similarities with others. However, this behavior is associated with higher symptoms and doesn't seem to help in their recovery. Similarly, people with eating disorders may use trigger warnings to find the worst content related to their disorder, rather than avoiding it. These findings challenge the notion that people always make rational decisions to avoid potentially painful information or material based on trigger warnings. The complexities of human behavior continue to surprise us and highlight the importance of ongoing research in this area.
Trigger warnings for sensitive topics: Helpful or Harmful?: The impact of trigger warnings and stories about suicide on individuals and society is complex, requiring sensitivity and understanding.
The use of trigger warnings for sensitive topics like child loss or suicide is a complex issue. While some people may find them helpful, others, like Rachel who shared her experience of losing her child, believe they can cause harm by making their suffering feel taboo. The impact of stories about suicide on suicide rates is also complicated. While some studies suggest that such stories can inspire suicides (Werther effect), others indicate that they can actually reduce the likelihood of suicide (Papageno effect). The way these stories are told and framed plays a crucial role in their impact. The CDC offers guidelines for media professionals on how to responsibly tell stories about suicide, but there's no suggestion to precede them with content warnings. The 2017 Netflix show "13 Reasons Why," which depicted suicide in graphic detail, broke many of these rules and sparked controversy. Personal stories of struggle and resilience, like Rachel's, can serve as valuable maps for others, but it's essential to approach them with sensitivity and understanding.
Discussing emotions with trusted individuals is key: Discussing emotions with trusted individuals can help make them less overwhelming. Strategies like distraction techniques, reappraisal, and aftercare are more effective than trigger warnings for dealing with upsetting content online.
While procrastination might have saved the speaker's life in a way by allowing them to avoid confronting upsetting content, open communication about feelings and experiences can help make them less overwhelming. The speaker's psychiatrist emphasized the importance of discussing emotions with trusted individuals, as expressed in the quote from Fred Rogers, "Anything that's human is mentionable." Trigger warnings, while well-intentioned, might not be the most effective solution to mitigating the negative effects of upsetting content on the internet. Instead, strategies such as distraction techniques, reappraisal, and aftercare could be more beneficial. However, the responsibility for what we consume online also lies with the individual. Social media platforms can be addictive and harmful, as seen in cases like the death of Molly Russell, who was negatively affected by content on Instagram. While efforts are being made to improve online safety, it's crucial to continue the conversation about trauma, resilience, and healing from online content.
Trigger warnings and their impact on young people: Trigger warnings may not always be effective and can't prevent all negative reactions, but reaching out for help when struggling with thoughts of suicide is crucial.
While trigger warnings may seem like a minor issue, they can have significant consequences, particularly for young people. As Doctor Victoria Bridgeland, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Flinders and the author of trigger warning studies, emphasizes, it's important to remember that what we call a trigger warning isn't always effective, and it may not be a seat belt. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, it's crucial to reach out for help. The CDC advises calling a suicide hotline, and if you don't prefer hotlines, find someone to talk to instead. The message is that anything mentionable is manageable, and many people are managing to stick around and are glad they did. Additionally, the podcast "Search Engine" offers a premium version with bonuses and the opportunity to support their work. They recommend checking out shows like "The Interview," "What Now with Trevor Noah," and "The Gist." The podcast is created by PJ Vogt and Truthi Pinmaneni, produced by Garrett Graham and Noah John, and fact-checked by Holly Patton. The team includes Jigsaw, Odysee, and UTA, and you can listen to it for free on the Odysee app or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, if you'd like to help support the show, visit search engine.show.
