Emotions call to their brethren in others. If someone addresses us in anger, we get angry. If we go where people are laughing, we laugh as well. This is called emotional contagion. It is quite common and some people believe it may be at the root of such positive things as social cohesion and empathy.
However, sometimes, when the emotions are negative, it is not such a good thing. Therapists will suggest couples each take a time out when the discussion threatens to become a heated argument, for example. Escalating anger, with each partner’s emotion feeding on the emotion of the other, can be a dangerous thing.
Then there is mass hysteria. Mass hysteria is the transmission of the perception of threat through a population. It is usually spread by rumor but may also be spread in other ways, such as suggestion or example. Wikipedia speaks of the “dancing plague” of 1518. While this sounds to me like a really fun “plague” to have if you absolutely must have one – light years better than the Black Death, for instance – I am not sure I would want to boogie my way into the Afterworld as some folks did.
Closer to our own time, have you heard about the mass hysteria associated with Orson Wells’ radio presentation of War of the Worlds? While many people question the veracity of claims of suicides etc, the power of radio and other forms of mass media to spread the perception of threat is seldom questioned.
Where am I going with this? Here. Specifically, we are both blessed and cursed to have social media. We are able to share many things with friends new and old. We are able to support and comfort one another but with that same social media we are also able to scare each other nearly to death.
Each of us is different. Not everyone has the same background and not everyone will have the same future. Two courses of the same condition are rarely alike. Two people will often respond to the same treatment very differently. However, when we hear someone else’s story we somehow fear her story will be ours. Emotions take over and we despair.
The way we can keep from falling into the trap of assuming the fate of others will be ours and sinking deeper into despair is to step back and look at the facts. Using rational mind to counter emotional mind in order to get to the calm accepting state that is wise mind actually does work. [Lin/Linda: Rational mind, emotional mind and wise mind are from Sue’s page Three States of Mind. Check it out!]
In the case of the War of the Worlds broadcast, there were a number of ways to check the facts. The “news” of the “invasion” was only on one radio station. There was a disclaimer at the start of the show and the show was only an hour long. Change the station, ask a neighbor, wait before you panic…several different options for avoiding mass hysteria here.
How about in the world of AMD and social media?
Let’s take the conversion issue for example. Conversion from dry to wet AMD is scary but hardly inevitable. FACT: based on info from the Age-Related Macular Degeneration Foundation, approximately 10% of those with dry AMD convert to wet. That means we who have dry AMD have a 90% chance of staying dry and never converting. Why bet you will convert if those are the odds? Smart money is on assuming we stay dry.
How about “horrible” eye shots? When I felt nothing with the shots I may or may not be getting, Lin did a quick survey and got around 50 people who said they never had an issue. That was 50 people who read it, were available and answered within a couple of hours.
Bad results are not inevitable but it is the bad results people will tell you about.
Each of us is unique. We cannot assume from one person’s story that her fate will be our fate. If you are worried about something, step back, breathe and check the facts. Much of the time what we fear simply is not going to happen.
Where to get the facts? Ask us! If we don’t know, Lin and I will find out for you.
Oh, and if you want a good distraction, Orson Wells’ War of the Worlds radio broadcast is on You Tube. 57 minutes long. Enjoy.
Written August 10th, 2019