Keep calm and carry on - From book to television and back to books: The scicomm journey of stress expert Marie-Anne Vanderhasselt

This fall, several scientists took center stage in the prime-time TV program Kalm Waes, an experiment aimed at helping actor and presenter Tom Waes conquer his stress. Among them was Prof. Marie-Anne Vanderhasselt, head of the Experimental Psychiatry group at Ghent University’s Faculty of Medicine. She reflects on how presenting the science behind stress management in this unconventional format has been a source of inspiration for both her research and her science communication efforts.

© Pieter-Jan Van Stockstraeten

Vanderhasselt is one of those professors with a strong commitment to public outreach. In 2022, she published her first book for a general audience on parenting and stress (Ouders onder hoogspanning, published by El Tigre Publishing). Filled with practical and evidence-based frameworks on how parents can prevent and cope with accumulating stress levels, the book opened many doors for media interviews, keynote talks, and podcast appearances. Now Vanderhasselt can add something new to that growing list of outreach activities: a big television production. 

She featured in all episodes of Kalm Waes (Calm Waes), a tv programme with local celebrity Tom Waes and created by tv production company De Mensen aired in September and October of this year. The show revolves around a ‘big experiment’ in which Waes is put for 10 days in isolation in a cabin, where he needs to apply everything he has learned about coping with stress in the weeks and months prior.

An unconventional partnership

How did Vanderhasselt end up as one of the scientific experts on the show? It turns out, one scicomm activity had led to the other: “In February 2023, I was featured in a five-minute radio interview on an episode of De Wereld van Sofie [VRT Radio 1] that focused on dealing with negative feedback and criticism. As a stress researcher, I explained how criticism activates the stress network, makes us vulnerable, triggers our insecurities, etc. A few directors of De Mensen had caught wind of it and contacted me.”

At the time, the plans for what would eventually become Kalm Waes were still in the brainstorming phase. “The producers shared their idea of making a program focused on stress, but the format was still unclear.”

Vanderhasselt invited the producers to her lab at the University Hospital in Ghent and demonstrated the different types of stress tests they conduct in the lab to measure someone’s stress response. The producers also reached out to other experts in the field. 

The idea of isolating someone in a cabin emerged during a later phase of planning. Vanderhasselt cautioned the producers that such isolation would likely generate significant stress. However, they argued that Tom could apply the techniques he’d learned to manage that stress, which ultimately shaped the program’s format.

No acting

Last year in October, the big day arrived for Vanderhasselt and her team. Waes and the tv crew came to Ghent to undergo and film the lab’s full battery of tests. “We ran all the tests just once, like we normally would,” says Vanderhasselt. “Nothing was staged or repeated. Our ‘performance’ and Tom’s reaction were all genuine.”

At one point in the show, we see how Waes is confronted with an animal that truely terrifies him—a snake. Again, Vanderhasselt stresses that Waes had been kept in the dark about it and that his fearful reaction was 100% real.

The team also conducted a VR experiment in which Waes walked through a virtual city and forest, but these parts didn’t make the final cut.

Later on, Vanderhasselt participated in an in-depth interview to provide more context to situations and fragments that would be used in the program. Tom Waes also returned to the lab for a follow-up conversation.

The delicate balance of ‘infotainment’

Participating in the program was all in all a very positive experience, says Vanderhasselt: “I found the experience enriching, working with intelligent people who value evidence-based science communication. The interventions we tested were based on my book, Ouders onder hoogspanning. While there was some entertainment value, the scientific foundation was strong.”

Not every ‘intervention’ featured in the program had that same solid evidence behind it, though. Vanderhasselt shares that she had no direct interactions with the other experts on the show.

“There were other academic experts, like neuroscientist Steven Laureys or the specialists at imec, but also a wide variety of other profiles, like a Tibetan monk, a diving and breathing instructor, and the organizer of group hugging sessions.” 

Waes has shared in interviews that he believes this to be a strength of the show: “For many people, [some of the interventions] might feel a bit too wooly or fluffy. That’s why I think I might be the right person for the program,” he said to VRT News. “You’ll sometimes see me rolling my eyes or not being very enthusiastic about certain experiments—group hugging, for example, is really not my thing—and that’s exactly what makes it so relatable.”  

The variety in approaches and relatable response of Tom might be the right ingredients to entertain an audience, but it wasn’t always evidence-based. While she has some reservations about the inclusion of such activities, like group hugs with total strangers, Vanderhasselt believes that context is key, and that overall, the program struck a good balance between education and entertainment while addressing a complex topic. 

“I felt I could share my messages with the right context, rigor, and integrity. I don’t necessarily feel the need to police every statement made by others on the show.” In other words: focus on the bigger picture and choose your battles wisely—as an expert in dealing with stress, it sounds like she walks the talk.

Zooming in on friendship

Vanderhasselt visited the observation outpost of the cabin twice. Once at the beginning to provide Tom with a book, and again later, toward the end of his stay. Even for a seasoned expert, it was striking to witness just how much the isolation affected Waes. “Despite all of the tools and techniques available to him, the absence of social contact had a profound impact on Tom. The show demonstrated just how important our social networks are.”

It inspired Vanderhasselt to start writing her second book, which is focused entirely on friendship and its positive and powerful effects on our wellbeing. “We know that loneliness is a negative predictor of well being, while friendship forms a buffer for all kinds of adverse effects. Since Kalm Waes, my team has ventured on a new line of research focused on the relationship between social connections and stress.” 

Kalm Waes was initially scheduled to air in early 2024, then moved to April, but was eventually postponed once more as Waes was also presenting a program about the elections around that time. The series of postponements gave Vanderhasselt the time she needed to complete the book and coordinate its release with the show.

Books vs tv

From book to tv show back to book, and from scientific expertise to outreach and back to inspiration for new research lines. The story is a fantastic example of the power of communicating science. 

Vanderhasselt embraces this diversity in formats, topics, and disciplines: “The first episode, where I was featured the most, reached nearly a million viewers—an audience I’d never reach with my books, let alone my academic publications. However, I still value writing books, as readers can engage with them at their own pace.”

“The first episode reached nearly a million viewers—an audience I’d never reach with my books, let alone my academic publications.”

She explains that, despite her considerable experience, participating in Kalm Waes further enhanced her ability to communicate scientific concepts in a way that truly connects with general audiences.

Nevertheless, be it books or tv, science communication can be demanding work. It requires a great deal of preparation, and filming can be both intense and exhausting. During the studio interview, for instance, I was worn out after weeks of heavy teaching loads and late-night work. I felt I didn’t perform at my best, which taught me the importance of managing my energy more effectively for opportunities like these.”

She is glad to have had the opportunity to highlight stress research to such a broad audience. “I’ve since received more recognition for my efforts, including awards like the KVAB prize for science communication. While much of this work is done in my spare time, the positive feedback from both colleagues and the public makes it incredibly rewarding.”

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Books by Vanderhasselt 'Ouders onder hoogspanning'

'Je bent een vriend van mij'