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Re:Thinking with Adam GrantRe:Thinking with Adam Grant

How Olympian Molly Carlson handles body dysmorphia #bravegang

Molly Carlson is a professional high diver, three-time runner-up at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, and the founder of Brave Gang, an online community of people who encourage each other to face their fears together. In this episode, Molly and Adam reflect on anxiety and motivation, the functions and dysfunctions of fear, and how to harness the benefits and overcome the costs. They also discuss what Molly has learned from her challenges with mental health, body image, and asking for help. The TED Audio Collective is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Audio Collective videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

Adam GranthostMolly Carlsonguest
Sep 17, 20250mWatch on YouTube ↗

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  1. 0:00 – 0:07

    Adam Grant’s question: Body dysmorphia in a judged, body-focused sport

    1. AG

      How have you handled, like, body dysmorphia in a sport where body image is so salient and so central to what you do?

  2. 0:07 – 0:37

    Why judged sports can intensify body image pressure: Minimal uniforms and constant visibility

    1. MC

      I think what makes judge sports worse is that you're wearing almost nothing. [laughs] This does not help. If I could wear a swim- or a sweatsuit and go do my job, I'd be like, "Oh, no one can see my body. Like, it's fine. Like, I'll do 18 flips, like, it doesn't matter." But you're in these small bathing suits literally showing if you're bloated, everyone can see that. If you have cellulite, everyone can see that, and this haunted me for years. My genetics are cellulite everywhere,

  3. 0:37 – 0:57

    From shame to ownership: Reframing “flaws” like cellulite into strength and pride

    1. MC

      and like, now I love it. I'm like, "Hell yeah." I jump off cliffs with cellulite. Like, you can't do what I do literally. [laughs] And it took me a while to get there, but back when I thought I was the only one having cellulite and doing this sport, I'm like, "Am I supposed to quit because I have flaws or flaws in what we think are flaws?"

Episode duration: 0:58

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