Is there such a thing as a non shitlib overview of the concept known as Microaggressions!?
i mean yeah, there's a strong medical case for this, in addition to the things other people are saying in this thread. It's just that people are dismissive of the term "microaggressions" because their political preconception is that people can "just handle" small amounts of stress over and over with no negative effects. Nobody's saying an individual microaggression is going to obliterate anyone, it's that they happen over and over again, and they accumulate a toll on physical and mental health. We know that excess release of cortisol causes damage to the body and brain. Cortisol is a steroid/hormone that exists to regulate bodily functions:
Wakes you up in the morning
Helps to regulate blood pressure
Aids indigestion
Perceives threats in order to try keeping you safe
The "perceiving threats" part is the issue.
Constant Phone calls from bill collectors. Arguing with your landlord. Arguing with your boss. Experiencing discrimination. Hearing bad news. All of these can trigger fight-or-flight response in your nervous system even though there is no immediate threat. Your brain responds to non-immediate "systemic threats" like discrimination and poverty the same way it responds to immediate threats like a rabid dog attacking you. Your cortisol spikes, and your body is damaged by this repeated release of stress hormones. This is why if people keep "microaggressing" against you it's a real problem. I know there was a lot of "microaggression" discourse 5-10 years ago and everyone just rolled their eyes and said "fuckin snowflakes" but this is a serious thing, especially for marginalized groups, but also for everyone else.
There's a strong case to be made that the "psychic damage" we always joke about on here is, in fact, real.
i mean yeah, there's a strong medical case for this, in addition to the things other people are saying in this thread. It's just that people are dismissive of the term "microaggressions" because their political preconception is that people can "just handle" small amounts of stress over and over with no negative effects. Nobody's saying an individual microaggression is going to obliterate anyone, it's that they happen over and over again, and they accumulate a toll on physical and mental health. We know that excess release of cortisol causes damage to the body and brain. Cortisol is a steroid/hormone that exists to regulate bodily functions:
The "perceiving threats" part is the issue.
Constant Phone calls from bill collectors. Arguing with your landlord. Arguing with your boss. Experiencing discrimination. Hearing bad news. All of these can trigger fight-or-flight response in your nervous system even though there is no immediate threat. Your brain responds to non-immediate "systemic threats" like discrimination and poverty the same way it responds to immediate threats like a rabid dog attacking you. Your cortisol spikes, and your body is damaged by this repeated release of stress hormones. This is why if people keep "microaggressing" against you it's a real problem. I know there was a lot of "microaggression" discourse 5-10 years ago and everyone just rolled their eyes and said "fuckin snowflakes" but this is a serious thing, especially for marginalized groups, but also for everyone else.
There's a strong case to be made that the "psychic damage" we always joke about on here is, in fact, real.