The BIG Takeaway™ newsletter By Rich Trombetta Feb. 27, 2023
Using examples from TV, movies and sports to launch a journey toward peace and happiness at work, at home...in life. Grab the remote and change your life.™
This week's trivia question: Harrison Ford has never won an Oscar and has only been nominated once. For which role was he nominated?
Hint - it's not "Six Days Seven Nights." Answer at the bottom.
Expanding your perspective. Apple's "Shrinking" offers a lesson on compassion toward...everyone.
The context "A grieving therapist starts to tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge changes to people's lives - including his own." (source IMDB.com)
"Shrinking" stars Jason Segel and Harrison Ford as therapists in this new Apple TV show.
Segal is working through his own serious issues (I am avoiding spoilers here) as he also tries to assist his patients.
Throughout the show viewers get a glimpse into the lives of the people around him; co-workers, neighbors, friends and his daughter.
Go deeper While the show centers around the issues and struggles of Segal's character, it also very subtly sends a powerful message - EVERYONE has issues and struggles.
Harrison Ford's character is working through a situation (again, no spoilers); another therapist is having troubles at home; Segal's daughter is having trouble coping with everything that has happened in her life; a neighbor is trying to help but possibly for the wrong reasons; Segal's friend deals with things differently that others. And we haven't even mentioned the patients.
Every single person in the show has something going on that is impacting their lives; Segal's character just happens to be link that connects them.
The show is not about Segal's character; that is too obvious. It is about the reality of life.
Consider this Statistically the odds are very high that the people you are interacting with today have something going on in their lives that is affecting them.
Below are statistics from the National Alliance on Mental Illness for 2020 (updated June 2022):
21% of U.S. adults experienced mental illness in 2020 (52.9 million people). This represents 1 in 5 adults.
Among U.S. young adults (aged 18-25) 1 in 3 experienced a mental illness.
Among U.S. adolescents (aged 12-17), 1 in 6 experienced a major depressive episode (MDE), 3 million had serious thoughts of suicide, and there was a 31% increase in mental health-related emergency department visits.
These alarming aspect of these statistics is that these only represent the people who have come forward and/or have been diagnosed.
And while these numbers focus on mental illness, there are countless more people who are going through a stressful, sad or anxiety provoking situation that might not require medical attention but is still having a negative impact on their lives.
Connect the dots "Shrinking" provides a great reminder that while individually we might have struggles (think Segal's character), those in our orbit most likely have challenges going on as well.
Once we embrace this perspective we are able to live each day with more grace and compassion.
Rather than pass judgment, be angry or assume ill intent, maybe it would be better to ask ourselves "I wonder what might be going on with this person that is causing them to behave this way?"
Watch "Shrinking" and notice just how much is going on with each person in the show. While your life and the lives of the people around you might not have the same level of tragedy or complexity, there are, most likely, things going on behind the scenes that you don't know about; the statistics don't lie.
My BIG Takeaway
I have to constantly remind myself that almost EVERYONE has something going on in their lives which requires me to work hard at replacing judgment with curiosity and compassion; this is not an easy task for me.
Parting thoughts I hope that if you or someone you know is struggling that you seek out help or assistance. Another great lesson from "Shrinking" is that talking with someone and working through the issues can be a great path forward.
Fun news! We are working with others to spread joy. The BIG Takeaway comes out on Mondays. How about some inspiration on Tuesdays? Check out the Positive DONUT newsletter.
Wake up and choose good vibes 🤗. Brighten your Tuesdays with the free email delivering “awww” (and awe) inspiring stories you won’t hear in the news. Also included: a sprinkle of everything needed to turn a frown upside down.
Quote for the week “Mental pain is less dramatic than physical pain, but it is more common and also more hard to bear. The frequent attempt to conceal mental pain increases the burden: It is easier to say ‘My tooth is aching’ than to say ‘My heart is broken.’” - C. S. Lewis, 1940
Trivia answer
Harrison Ford has never won an Oscar and has only been nominated once. For which role was he nominated?
