Gun violence, the climate crisis, political division and brain-hijacking technology make today’s society a breeding ground for anxiety.
Disrupting the cycle of constant worry requires big shifts in how we relate to the world, argues Martha Beck. Searching for ways to curb her own off-the-charts anxiety led the sociologist and best-selling author to discover that curiosity and creativity can act as antidotes. Evidence shows a kind of toggle effect between creativity and anxiety, she explained in her new book, “Beyond Anxiety: Curiosity, Creativity, and Finding Your Life’s Purpose.” “When one is up and running, the other seems to go silent.”
Our brain’s natural programming makes it easy to slip from calm into catastrophizing, wrote Beck in her book. So, mounting a defense against the “infinite, subtle and powerful” cultural forces that amplify our anxiety demands that we nurture new brain pathways to cultivate “curiosity, wonder, connection, compassion and awe.” She shares strategies designed to soothe anxiety, which she describes as a “frightened creature in your brain,” while liberating the creative genius inside us all.