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I disagree. There is increasing conversation in the medical community[0] about living past one’s health-span for years. While fear of death is widely considere

by caseyy 1y ago

I disagree. There is increasing conversation in the medical community[0] about living past one’s health-span for years. While fear of death is widely considered universal, many people (for various reasons) fear death significantly less than others[1]. Fear of death levels appear to generally stabilize to low past 60 years of age. Many philosophies reject the fear of death, including some of our very popular religions. Only about half of terminally ill patients feel clinically significant death anxiety[2]. It is normal to not fear death without being depressed, enlightened, or stupid. I think it’s not so black and white as evolutionary psychology might suggest. [0] https://peterattiamd.com/outlive/ https://peterattiamd.com/outlive/ [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_anxiety https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_anxiety [2] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35609222/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35609222/

JumpCrisscross 1y ago
> increasing conversation in the medical community[0] about living past one’s health-span for years Sure. This doesn't reflect the popular discourse, which is more concerned with fantastical edge cases. > fear death significantly less than others Totally agree. > Only about half of terminally ill patients feel clinically significant death anxiety Massive difference between death anxiety, which crosses into dreadful anticipation of a future state, and fear, which is more of a present concern. I fear getting hit by a car. I'm not really concerned with it most of the time. (And when I am, it's fleeting and limmited.) When you say fearing death, I think you mean obsessing over death. That, I agree, is unhealthy. Fear, more generally, is an unpleasantness that results from dangers or threats. Death is very clearly a danger and threat. Contemplating it doesn't need to be uncomfortable. But it's dedidedly unnatural, if alluring, to consider one's own death monotonoically. (For what it's worth, this is closer to my experience. But I also know I have a high risk tolerance, and have to consciously keep an eye on that.)

by caseyy 1y ago

JumpCrisscross 1y ago

> increasing conversation in the medical community[0] about living past one’s health-span for years Sure. This doesn't reflect the popular discourse, which is more concerned with fantastical edge cases. > fear death significantly less than others Totally agree. > Only about half of terminally ill patients feel clinically significant death anxiety Massive difference between death anxiety, which crosses into dreadful anticipation of a future state, and fear, which is more of a present concern. I fear getting hit by a car. I'm not really concerned with it most of the time. (And when I am, it's fleeting and limmited.) When you say fearing death, I think you mean obsessing over death. That, I agree, is unhealthy. Fear, more generally, is an unpleasantness that results from dangers or threats. Death is very clearly a danger and threat. Contemplating it doesn't need to be uncomfortable. But it's dedidedly unnatural, if alluring, to consider one's own death monotonoically. (For what it's worth, this is closer to my experience. But I also know I have a high risk tolerance, and have to consciously keep an eye on that.)