Episode

The things we carry

Podcast: Harvard Thinking
Published: Mar 18, 2026
Duration seconds: 2002
Processing state: not_requested
Canonical source: https://harvard-thinking.simplecast.com/episodes/adversity-trauma-dMexkj2l
Audio: https://cdn.simplecast.com/media/audio/transcoded/d6acd2e7-b019-4100-836c-a98c3f2df797/ac2b9968-4d64-42e6-b97f-e96f88f429fb/episodes/audio/group/59997745-4d22-4298-b06f-f3c5f826de76/group-item/82752e63-8f19-4a71-971c-d13810b34b07/128_default_tc.mp3?aid=rss_feed&feed=tyge_lYM
JSON: /v1/public/podcasts/harvard-thinking-6767250/episodes/the-things-we-carry
Markdown: /podcast/harvard-thinking-6767250/the-things-we-carry.md

Actions

POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/harvard-thinking-6767250/episodes/the-things-we-carry/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/harvard-thinking-6767250/the-things-we-carry.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

Summary

Different forms of adversity – like abuse, violence, and neglect – not only damage our physical and mental health but also change our cells. Scientific advances in the biology of adversity are showing us that in some cases, the harms of negative experiences run dangerously deep in our bodies and minds. In this episode, host Samantha Laine Perfas talks with children’s psychologist Kate McLaughlin, psychiatric epidemiologist Karestan Koenen, and cellular biologist Jason Buenrostro about what the future holds for protecting people from their worst experiences.