'Seeing somebody need you, seeing somebody in pain, is not necessarily traumatizing: not being able to help them is a moral injury that is traumatizing. So I also wanted to challenge ideas of what hurts.'
Most of us run away from disaster. Similarly, we try to avoid painful emotions.
For Professor Lucy Easthope, expert and adviser on emergency planning and disaster recovery, heading towards the most traumatic diaster scenes as others flee in the opposite direction is par for the course, as is leaning into the rawest human emotions of grief, horror and anger.
How do you do this every day and stay not only sane but cheerful? And how do you write about it in a way that readers can bear?
In this truly extraordinary conversation, we explore courage, clarity, how writing helps both ourselves and others, and why books should be available on prescription.
If you only listen to one podcast this week, make it this one.