On Fires and Feelings

Being stuck at home for an extended period of time, worrying about the safety of yourself and your loved ones takes a toll on your mental health. “For the first time, it seems, the entire world knows what it’s like to live inside my head,” writes Stephanie Foo, who was diagnosed with complex PTSD in 2018. We talk to her about how to keep yourself on an even keel when the whole world feels like a disaster.

Also, how much impact did native people have on the forests of New England? It’s been a great debate ever since William Cronon published Changes in the Land in 1983, claiming they had dramatically altered the landscape that colonist observed upon arrival. But a new study challenges that narrative, as well as the very idea that agriculture and large-scale impacts on landscapes should be used as a barometer of the “progress” of a society.

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Credits

Outside/In was produced this week by Justine Paradis and Sam Evans-Brown with help from Taylor Quimby

Erika Janik is our executive producer.

Our theme music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.

Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

If you’ve got a question for our Ask Sam hotline, give us a call! We’re always looking for rabbit holes to dive down into. Leave us a voicemail at: 1-844-GO-OTTER (844-466-8837). Don’t forget to leave a number so we can call you back.