How Physics Sees “Ending one’s life” — and Why It Shouldn’t Be Done
(By: Muh. Syahrul Padli)
Let’s take a trip into the world of reality using a vehicle called Physics. My explanation might get technical, and maybe you won’t be able to finish reading it because social media — especially TikTok and Instagram — has shortened our attention span. That’s okay. Read it when you have time or take it one paragraph at a time if you’re bored.
1. Physics and Uncertainty
Our lives are full of uncertainty. The source of this uncertainty is the countless variables inside and outside of us.
For example, life and death are influenced by so many variables that we cannot calculate them accurately. These include genetic conditions, accidents, negligence, and even natural disasters. Each of these variables has further details that are hard to predict. They all contribute, in their own way, to the possibility of death.
We can’t fully control what happens because it’s impossible to manage all the variables affecting our lives. Humans are not as brilliant as we think. Even the power and influence of a crazy richs people can be destroyed by a natural disaster.
In physics, there’s a concept called the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. This principle states that we cannot know two fundamental aspects of a system, like a particle’s position and momentum, at the same time with certainty.
This shows that even with something as simple as a particle, humans cannot determine its two basic variables simultaneously. We are limited, either by our technology or by nature itself, which may have boundaries that humans can never surpass.
If uncertainty exists at the microscopic level — controlling particles, atoms, and molecules — it’s likely just as impossible to understand all the variables in the larger world.
On the macroscopic level, in our daily lives, uncertainty also controls us. Our ancestors have tried to make peace with uncertainty for a long time. Their collective experiences gave rise to philosophies like Stoicism, Zen, and Nihilism. For humans, uncertainty is a fundamental part of existence.
Even though there are no guarantees life will get better because of uncertainty, remember there’s also no guarantee life will get worse. What we can do is return to our natural instincts, which have proven to protect humans from extinction: survival, reproduction, growth, eating, and adapting as best we can.
Our main task is to survive in uncertainty. Often, we think things will get worse and that there’s no way out. But that’s not certain. Trying to ensure something within uncertainty is a wrong approach in Physics — and also in religion, philosophy, and culture.
2. Physics and Change
Day becomes night. Night turns to dawn. Morning turns into day. Time changes, marking the change of our world.
Physics is the science of observing changes. For example, speed is the change from being still. Displacement is the change of position.
Physics develops by observing, formulating, and predicting changes. In some branches of physics, identifying patterns in changes leads to innovations and ways to reduce risk.
Our world is constantly changing. Even when we feel stagnant, the world around us is still changing. Change is like waves appearing on the ocean of uncertainty.
On the other hand, physics also gives us hope that there are general patterns that resemble certainty. In life, these patterns come in many forms.
For example, there’s a pattern that eating healthy foods and exercising can extend life. If possible, it’s better to follow this. Another example: a quality family often depends on sufficient finances, the right partner, and commitment. Striving to meet these components increases the likelihood of having a good life.
If these examples seem hard to follow, here’s one that is always relevant: during depression, people who end their life will lose the chance to experience change.
They cut off the possibility of change for the better with ropes around their necks, poison in their mouths, toxic gas in their lungs, or barcodes on their wrists. This is a terrible choice because it’s illogical.
The future is uncertain. But one thing is certain — there will be change. Whether things get better or worse, the future will always be different from the present.
3. Physics and Pressure
In physics, pressure is defined as the force applied to a certain area (P=F/AP = F/AP=F/A). The larger the force or the smaller the area, the higher the pressure.
Force refers to the source or cause of a change in condition. Force can come from a push, a stomp, or any activity that alters the initial condition into something different — even if the effect is small. Simply put, that’s what force means.
In everyday life, people often face “pressure” from forces like work demands, social relationships, or even self-expectations.
Just like in physics, psychological pressure arises when there’s a “force” such as problems or burdens pressing on an individual. In psychological terms, “area” can be understood as a person’s mental capacity or resilience.
When someone’s mental capacity is small — due to a lack of social support, emotional exhaustion, or mental health issues — the pressure becomes greater and harder to handle.
If this pressure keeps increasing without a solution, the person can experience severe stress, depression, or even thoughts of ending their life.
When the pressure on an object exceeds its limit, it breaks or gets damaged. In humans, extreme mental pressure can lead to feelings of hopelessness. Ending ones life thoughts often emerge when someone feels they can no longer fight the weight of life.
Factors like social isolation, untreated mental disorders, past trauma, or persistent life stress can make it getting worse this condition.
Humans are not as elastic as rubber or springs, which can return to their original shape after being stretched or compressed.
We don’t have that property because, through millions of years of evolution, we’ve developed better adaptations than non-living objects. That’s why the first step is to shift from a fragile mindset (easily broken) to an anti-fragile mindset (resilient to stress).
We adapt to forces by adjusting the area they act upon. The force is an external factor that we mostly cannot change, but the area is within our control. By adjusting this area, the pressure becomes easy to handle.
Saying “pressure turns carbon into diamonds” is a misleading quote. Humans can also turn into petroleum or charcoal. People’s ability to adapt varies and cannot be generalized.
Humans are creatures full of potential, but at the same time, we are cursed by our own fragility. How we respond depends on genetic makeup, environmental influences, and other factors. These determine whether a person uses their potential or accepts fragility as an unchangeable fate. Utilizing potential is known as a growth mindset, while surrendering to fate without any effort to improve is called a fixed mindset.
Unfortunately, humans are not equally adaptive in all situations. In a depressive condition, a person’s ability to adjust the area of pressure becomes chaotic. Even a normal force is met with a smaller area, making the pressure feel much greater. This is different from someone who faces the same force but still has the awareness to adjust their area, keeping the pressure easy to handle.
If you have family, friends, or loved ones experiencing depression or psychological challenges, it’s important to give them attention — not add more force by judging, mocking, or criticizing them. Good intentions expressed in the wrong way can increase the pressure and permanently break someone.
4. Conclusion
The laws of physics that control the universe cannot fully explain our personal or environmental conditions. However, physics, when supported by knowledge from other fields like psychology, basic psychiatry, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and anthropology, offers a broader perspective.
Uncertainty, Change, and Pressure — whether in physics or psychology — are inseparable parts of life.
Ending one’s life is an act of arrogance against the limits we have as humans. Natural laws control how we interact with time because our brain cannot account for all variables. The brain’s limitations might also be why we observe a split of the future, present, and past. Perhaps these three moments exist simultaneously, but our brain can only experience the present and remember the past.
The future remains a mystery because nature (or a higher supernatural power) seems to “design” it that way, allowing humans to live and evolve efficiently.
This is just my wild hypothesis. I believe this fills the gap between my role as a teacher, as someone who studies science — especially physics — and as a servant of God.
If you’re afraid of the future and believe it will end badly, at least have the courage to confirm that it really will. Even if it does end badly, you would have fulfilled the minimum characteristic of life: surviving for as long as possible.
Takalar, January 21, 2024
