Have you ever found yourself thinking: “What else is normal today?” Questioning normality is not a particularly innovative idea. We live in a world that is changing so rapidly that normalcy is no longer possible. Globalization and the new experiences that constantly bombard us make us constantly question our cultural and social standards. The assumption is that nothing may be normal anymore. However, our attitudes, behavior and lives are embedded in a social and cultural framework that forms the basis of normal life.
This framework is essential for a functioning society. Without him, living together would be impossible. But can it also be a cause of problems, and even diseases? Gabor Mattei answers this question in his book “On the Myth of the Natural,” written with his son Daniel Mattei. A Canadian doctor who deals with stress, addiction, ADHD and trauma examines how our Western world makes us sick.
The initial situation, which he clearly explains based on WHO data, is alarming: mental illnesses are becoming increasingly common, as are obesity, autoimmune diseases and chronic complaints. In medical terms, these represent a deviation from the desired state that must be restored through treatment. According to Mattei, this desired state corresponds to normality in the medical sense: health is “normal,” and illness is “abnormal.”
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