Podcast Summary: Bewildered

Episode: "Why So Anxious?"

Hosts: Martha Beck & Rowan Mangan
Date: January 8, 2025

Overview:

Main Theme:
This episode delves into the roots of anxiety, exploring why so many people today are anxious, the differences between fear and anxiety, and how modern culture—particularly through language and societal pressures—fuels a mass epidemic of anxious minds. Martha shares key insights from her new book, Beyond Anxiety, proposing that reconnecting to one's own nature and creative right-brain processes is the antidote to an anxious, control-obsessed world. The hosts maintain their trademark blend of idealism, sincerity, and playful humor throughout the conversation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Stories & Setting the Stage

• Martha’s Walking Story: Martha recounts a recent physical feat—walking 75 miles through the Cotswolds despite doubts and injuries—emphasizing the mysterious, “magical” side of human potential that emerges when we trust intuition over logic.

  • “When logic says no, but the thing in you says, ‘oh, go,’ go and see if magic picks you up. Honest to God, I’m kind of in amazement.” – Martha (05:14)

• Rowan’s Reflection: Rowan humorously contrasts her own story of intuition—dropping out of a PhD when her inner voice said to quit, leading to immense relief, and a playful discussion of doctor titles and “badger pants” (07:14).

Timestamp Highlights:

• [04:47] Martha’s “magic” walking story
• [07:14] Rowan on discovering her “gracious badger” style and a hairdresser’s comment on her “cute little train driver pants”

2. Why Are We So Anxious?

• The Modern Epidemic:

  • Martha shares a staggering statistic: hundreds of millions, possibly a billion people, suffer from clinical-level anxiety disorders globally ([14:29]).
  • It’s not solely due to current events. Animals face dangers but are not anxious like humans. The key difference? Language.

• Language and Imagination:

  • Only humans imagine dangers, relive past traumas, and anticipate future threats using language, fueling a vicious “anxiety spiral” where fear stories feed back into the amygdala, perpetuating stress ([15:41]).

  “Most animals are not anxious most of the time… Humans have anxiety because of one thing. Language.”
  —Martha (15:02)

• Social & Media Environment:

  • Rowan highlights how technology and media are deliberately designed to grab our attention by triggering fear—the very thing our brains are wired to focus on for survival ([21:54]).
  • Media and social structures (e.g., capitalism) profit from keeping us anxious and engaged.

  "It's in the interests of the people making money off you that you stay scared."
  —Rowan (22:41)

3. Fear vs. Anxiety: Key Differences

• Real Fear:

  • Immediate, situational response to danger; associated with clarity, action, and survival ([24:14]).
  • Example: A park ranger saving his girlfriend from a charging buffalo—instantaneous action, no overthinking.

• Anxiety:

  • Chronic, lingering; often based on imagined scenarios or stories, not present threats ([25:56]).
  • “It's like being haunted... there’s fear sort of lingering around and you don’t even really remember why you’re afraid.”

4. Cultural and Neurological Insights

• Negativity Bias:

  • The left hemisphere of the brain is biased to scan for threats, amplifying negative or fear-inducing signals ([28:04]).

• Left vs. Right Brain:

  • Left Hemisphere: Exclusionary, logical, driven by control and storytelling (often anxiety-producing).
  • Right Hemisphere: Inclusionary, creative, relational, open to awe, compassion, and curiosity.
  • Overcivilization and socialization have made us hyper-left-brained, vastly increasing anxiety in the modern populace ([32:23]).

  "There’s something about the left hemisphere that makes it believe that it is correct no matter what... the left hemisphere is very into physical things and, above all, control."
  —Martha (30:25)

5. The Way Out: From Anxiety to Curiosity, Creativity, and Connection

• The “Beyond Anxiety” Framework:

  • Anxiety thrives in left-brain, control-centric cycles.
  • The right hemisphere offers an antidote: move from anxiety → curiosity → creativity → connection ([34:42]).
  • Curiosity is Key: The first step out of anxiety isn’t calmness, but creative curiosity.

  “The opposite of anxiety for a human is not calm. It’s creativity. It’s making things... art in the broadest sense of the word.”
  —Martha (34:42)

• Concrete Practices:

  • Start with curiosity (even the simple “hmm” trick from psychiatrist Judson Brewer, which quickly shifts a group’s mood—[38:00])
  • Engage in artistic or inventive activities—making, building, storytelling, even jokes or poems.
  • Participate in communal, right-hemisphere activities: group art, shared creative rituals, genuine social connection (Wilder Community is referenced as just such a space—[47:00]).

• Neuroscience of Flow:

  • Creativity and connection shift brain chemistry: from adrenaline/cortisol-fueled anxiety to dopamine/serotonin-rich flow states ([43:28]).

  “When the right hemisphere starts to create, it builds things that cause... all anxiety falls away. And we get wrapped up in flow.”
  —Martha (44:04)

6. From Individual to Collective Healing

• Art as Connection:

  • Art is fundamentally about representing inner experience to others—“I am a dog, you are a dog; we’re both dogs”—which builds communal empathy and understanding ([46:27]).

  “We just create something... which says, ‘I’m a dog,’ on some level. In a more complex way than that, right?”
  —Rowan (46:28)

• Resisting Cultural Conditioning:

  • Bewildered isn’t just about individual transformation, but creating “countercultural” spaces for collective healing, support, and joy ([47:35]).
  • Wilder Community is highlighted as a real-life example where members move intentionally into connection and creativity.

  “We wanted some place where people could be countercultural in a way that would take them out of anxiety and into connection, out of fear and into love.”
  —Martha (47:57)

Notable Quotes

• On the root of anxiety:

  “Humans have anxiety because of one thing. Language... The left hemisphere of our brain takes this little spurt of fear and pops it into storytelling.”
  —Martha ([15:02], [15:43])

• On contemporary media and power:

  “It’s in the interests of the people making money off you that you stay scared.”
  —Rowan (22:41)

• On creativity as the cure:

  “The opposite of anxiety for a human is not calm. It’s creativity. It’s making things.”
  —Martha (34:42)

• On curiosity as a practice:

  “The first step away from anxiety is actually curiosity.”
  —Martha (35:51)

• On building community:

  “We wanted some place where people could be countercultural in a way that would take them out of anxiety and into connection, out of fear and into love.”
  —Martha (47:57)

• On art as self-recognition and connection:

  “All art is… making these things that are there to stay. Say, ‘this is what it’s like to be a me.’”
  —Rowan (45:56)

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Topic / Quote | |------------|--------------| | 04:47 | Martha on “magical” physical feats and following intuition | | 07:14 | Rowan and the “gracious badger”/train driver pants anecdote | | 13:19-14:29| Why so much anxiety? Global scale, statistics | | 15:41 | “Humans have anxiety because of one thing: language" | | 21:54 | Media, engagement, and the profit of stoking fear | | 25:56 | Fear vs. anxiety—how they feel and operate differently | | 28:04 | Left hemisphere negativity bias and the rise of control | | 34:42 | “The opposite of anxiety… is creativity” | | 38:00 | The “hmm” curiosity trick to shift group mood | | 43:28 | The science of flow, right brain chemistry | | 46:27-46:28| Dogs on both sides of a fence—a metaphor for creative connection | | 47:35 | Wilder Community as a creative, countercultural anxiety antidote |

Takeaways

• Humans are uniquely susceptible to chronic anxiety, due to our capacity—and cultural training—to create and believe stressful stories.
• Modern media and economic systems exploit and amplify this cycle for profit, making anxious engagement the norm.
• The path “beyond anxiety” is not to strive for calm, but to cultivate curiosity, creativity, and genuine connection—especially through art and community.
• Rebalancing brain activity from left-hemisphere anxiety loops to right-hemisphere creativity and love is both a personal and societal healing practice.
• True well-being comes from living authentically, playing, expressing ourselves, and connecting even (and especially) when that's countercultural.

Final Note:
If you crave more connection, curiosity, laughter, and right-brain living, explore the Wilder Community (wildercommunity.com) with like-minded “Kahoots.” And remember: “Curiosity, connection, love, and self-expression will help us solve the problems that make us so anxious everywhere.” (Martha, 49:06)

Stay wild.