The Complexity of Humanity (The Neuro Paradox)

“Doctor, what’s the cure for this?” It is a simple yet convoluted question. We might not know what goes underneath our bodies on a microscopic level, but we understand our feelings, thoughts, and reactions. Like other species compared to the human race, we build defensive strategies or innate responses to situations over time, which can also include a condition. Yet, another characteristic that defines humans is the ability to conceal authentic emotion. As we progress as a socioeconomic body, the epitome of the human race, we start to realize how we aren’t programmed to serve a robotic persona. We deserve to be human, a natural right that should be understood and morally accepted. 

But what defines a human? And how can we morally choose to celebrate and uphold that humanity?

By definition, a human being is “A member of any of the extinct species of the genus Homo, such as Homo erectus or Homo habilis, that are considered ancestral or closely related to modern humans.” (Oxford English Dictionary). Ironically, the definitions on which we base human thought and emotion are frankly more complicated than we can imagine, yet understood completely through our feelings as individuals of free thought. However, navigating the path to help others can be tricky when we cannot find the tools to help ourselves. Then the question becomes, could we afford to become solely solution finders or problem solvers? 

As agents of the human race, one may be defined under pain, family, love, matter, intellect, and identity. Our social identity, where we go to school, our friends, our family, and our environment subjects us to a different growing stage; different soil, water, and nutrients (Sharma, 2024). As simple as this may seem, the paradox does not necessarily lie in our ability to grow, but in our ability to persevere despite inhibition of it. As living organisms, we have preferences and interests, and the reaction to the deprivation of this can constitute pain, which also makes us human. By the same token, given that, to a basic level, depression and anxiety are disorders related to the cognitive reaction to trauma and pain, we can correlate these as evidence of our humanity. 

Trauma, a form of stimuli that can exhaust our brain, is a common cause of depression and anxiety, yet can be formulated by different relationships and situations ( Feriante and Sharma, 2023 ). No matter how much a human being can process pain, the catastrophe is

nonetheless the same. On the contrary, the response to trauma can change over time, as some may then be “tied” to this event, the same way we are bonded to our family, friends, and natural environment, incapacitating them from physical and mental flourishment and sprouting a negative perspective on the world ( Zoellner, 2013 ). 

In 2024, the younger generation has grown more comfortable and accepting of their identity. Yet, many still suffer from sexual trauma, conflict with religious figures on sexual identity, generational trauma, forced boundaries, etc. And, these all show a general trend that poses a resurgence in depression and anxiety (Mhlongo, 2023). The simple yet complicated way to communicate one’s needs in a dire situation would be to verbally say “I need help”. But before anyone can diagnose or propose a solution as self-proclaimed doctors, one must identify the individual’s unique circumstances, and not  generalize their needs as the same as the  majority. 

“On A Scale of 1-10…” 

 Humans are intelligent creatures. We can adapt to difficult circumstances and adopt different mindsets that can push us through adversity. Whether it's through computational and practical analysis or persuasive theology and debate performance, there are languages to which we can communicate different topics and discoveries. We are also beings  that are receptive and expressive of judgment- and on the subject of mental health- the majority of the human population struggles with this communication, and more specifically pain, especially among demographics of people who are underrepresented and have low social status ( Langner, 2012 ). Humans, undoubtedly, are smart, but also vulnerable, a skill that should be celebrated and held up on a pedestal; not weaponized and scrutinized through various forms of media. 

Vulnerability itself is the will to remain firm in one’s setbacks and flaws to willingly spread awareness and open communication of a widespread issue, or stigmatized phenomenon ( Clark and Preto, 2018). As one processes pain and CHOOSES to be vulnerable, there comes the challenge of how they find solace in other people who might not be as willing to share their story. Then, we find ourselves asking “How do you feel on a scale of 1-10?”, which frankly is a subjective question. Pain, like tolerance, is as unique as our personality, even though it is a shared experience. People’s experiences can build up tolerance to pain, and that creates a bigger drift in how well we understand each other’s true emotions and feelings. As one’s “9” is another person’s “3”, individuals resort to simplicity to avoid the true complexity of our minds and feelings. 

Likewise, the paradox not only lies in how vast our interconnected network is compared to other species but how little we can fully understand each other’s emotions (Israelashvili, 2019). Then, a person who might need desperate help is met with a lack of resources and finds themselves internalizing their struggles as forms of weakness, pushing them into toxic habits and patterns of mental spiraling. Can we then fully know how someone is feeling? Does this make us unfit to help others? Like said before, humans can adapt to difficult situations. As beings of communication, it's important and necessary to normalize these difficult conversations and continue to make space for people to come forth as they are. Although being at our lowest makes us susceptible to the greatest change, this makes our minds all the more powerful, all the more unique, and yet all the more dangerous. If we choose to disclose personal information and be “vulnerable”, we must sign a social contract and not use it against them, but uplift them. 

Our brain is more powerful than a supercomputer, able to generate calls and responses in a matter of seconds. The brain can generate nearly a quadrillion synapses (Ascoli, 2015 ). Also, our brain can allow us to mirror human interaction and empathize with human experience through tiny mirror neurons and dendrites (Jankowiak-Siuda, 2011). Yet, our minds can be so delicate, rendering us paralyzed physically and metaphorically. Fear, likewise, is paralytic, and a lifestyle under that state can lead to effects that leak into our workplace, school life, and more (Steimer, 2002). One switch, or “trigger”, can allow for a catalyzed flow of emotions and chemicals, and the human body must react to survive. As triggers become witness marks of trauma, little moments or stimuli can allow for moments of “fight” or flight”, and identifying those glimpses that make our body react can help us find the best antidote for the cure if there is one (Šimić, 2021). 

“I Have Your Results” 

Well then, what is the cure, “doctor”? There might not be an “end all be all” cure, but there is a mindset. The indirectness of this cure comes from the sole fact that our thoughts are not analyzable. As dilemmas come and go, the human mind goes immediately to “avoiding conflict” due to the exhaustion of being self-conscious. The ability to say “I need help” becomes equated as “burdensome” or “worrisome”, becoming evidence of our “people-pleaser” sense of nature. Although we may not understand what makes us tend to

self-deprecate, reinforcing positive self-talk is another key to trusting ourselves, and keeping ourselves grounded as we trust others with our story (Kim, 2011). We also must aim to distinguish between a cure and a coping mechanism. Sometimes, habits that we use to dealwith an issue that we face, whether it's related to anxiety or depression, are never actually solutions but evasions of the true problem (Pineles, 2011 ). Then, as we grow into this unhealthy habit, the problem never actually gets addressed, and the bandage itself becomes ripped. Our inability to fully come face to face with the thoughts we avoid makes us underestimate ourselves and overestimate the problem at hand. Then comes the “fix it” mentality, which pushes individuals to simply move on without having full closure. When interacting with other individuals, some converse with logic, some converse with emotion, and some view problems pragmatically . Individuals that are masters of their own story can fully see it through to the end, and find meaningful lessons looking back. 

Cognitive impairment and behavioral disorders related at the core to anxiety and depression were to be precursors of serious mental conditions like schizophrenia. And sometimes, while certain people may reap the benefits of noninvasive means of treatment like talk therapy, many cases can end in the overmedication of a patient which can contribute to lifelong psychological trauma, impersonal communication, and even physical deficiencies ( Gurpegui, 2023). 

Even in cases where patients could have therapists who are austere in their approach, a shift in direction could be a step in the right one. With the right people in place, depending on the support system that an individual is given in their circumstance, one can identify the root of their trauma. Many have struggled with the question “What scares you?” because everyone has natural fears and anxieties, but have struggled to identify when those uproot in youth and developmental stages in life. 

Nonetheless, some diseases are a constant fight, and a simple promise of “running away” from this fight is a mindset that we must absolve. As our body reacts to stimuli around us, our body reacts to protect itself, which is the foundation of intuition (Schmitt, 2022). We know what works for us and what doesn’t. Unfortunately, while every diagnosis has “common symptoms,” and can be resolved with a simple Google search, depression and anxiety are situational. It can be a disorder of the brain or something inherited via epigenetics (Peil, 2014), which, unfortunately, is out of our control. As humans have learned to live with other species through millennia, we can learn to live with our anxieties and use them to fully celebrate the human experience as vocally as possible. 

Conclusion:

Ultimately, denying someone their own experience is a testament to our unwillingness to create sympathy within ourselves. It contributes to the epidemic of internalization and forces those around us to contribute to the precise silence that deafens the human voice. The human voice is the unit of our individuality, clarifying intentions but magnifying emotional feelings. How are we as humans so ashamed of our individuality, flaws, and all? Perhaps, our human society has redefined humanity based on perfection, social acceptance, and judgment (Ashbey, 2017). Our voice is how our bodies maintain homeostasis, and deprivation of a homeostatic interaction or expression, ultimately weakens someone emotionally, socially, and psychologically (Peil, 2014). With today’s media landscape and the internet, this stigma has only been fed and even more internalized. 

Again, with the costs of healthcare and clinical processes of diagnosing and treating mental illness, some have continued to use their platform, through factual evidence, research, and down-to-earth verbal communication, to spread the word in hopes of fighting mental illness (Latha, 2020 and Cooper, 2020). Two sides of the fight have sprouted and it's up to us to decide which side wins, and which cure is more powerful. 

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Written by Samuel DeSilva

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