LOSING THE FIGHT TO WIN THE BATTLE
Too much battling against the world makes us hardened, unfeeling emotionally and unable to appreciate the finer things in life. It numbs our minds, halting the creative thoughts from flowing freely and keeps us in perpetual fight/flight stress mode.
One of my new year's resolutions is to avoid having so many drawn out battles any more. The fight has taken it's toll. I'm weary and apart from the physical manifestations, I find it difficult to fully enjoy what's there in front of me or muster the energy to invest in the pursuits that will enrich myself and others.
We all have our personal battles. There's a constant pressure from work, family duties, relationships, moral duties and internal struggles as we and try to take pleasure from life. Good things are worth fighting for so we need to make this a priority - the rest, we have to assess and let go if it's not worth our using up our energy on.
One such battle that I've fought in 2015, is against a large corporation that has been all-consuming for pretty much the whole year. Has it been worth it? In some regards it has. I have learned so much about myself, the symptoms of stress and how they affect our wellbeing - and the irony is that this teaching has all been through constant battling with this large adversary. I have a lot more to learn, but maybe this has all been a gift for me to now use my newfound knowledge and pass this on to others.
Shell Shock
During the First World War, when trench warfare took the lives of so many in battle, many more soldiers were suffering stress through the constant shelling from above and the threat of being blown up from below. This is when we first head of the term 'Shell Shock'. A lot of soldiers, displaying the symptoms - disorientated and confused, were actually executed by their own because their actions displayed a lack of moral fibre in the superior's view and often thought to be a deliberate tactic for desertion. Interestingly, the soldiers deserting their posts were shown little remorse - but higher ranking officers showing similar stress-related symptoms were often excused as their diagnosis related to a seemingly 'higher, more cerebral and upper class' affliction of the nerves.
This nervous disposition diagnosis has been shown to exist in the highly competitive business environments of the 20th and 21st century, notably among city traders, bankers and professionals working is a mostly sedentary role - but can also be said to afflict any of those working within the monetary system.
Back To Basics
The Japanese have discovered a form of therapy early on in the 20th century that can help rehabilitate those suffering with emotional stress. The process is to remove the sufferer from any stimulation through isolation with only their thoughts to deal with for a week. Following on from that, a programme of only light processes (like writing a blog) are given, to allow the thoughts to flow. After a period of reflection, heavy physical processes are introduced (like garden clearing or chopping wood). Tools on how better to deal with the emotions are introduced throughout and the satisfaction/rewards gained through enduring arduous tasks allows the individual to move forward into the final stages. It is at this point where re-integration into society facilitates the rehabilitated person to partake in regular life again but with the new tools of mindfulness, meditation and pulling on purpose-driven responses as apposed to the emotional ones, that allow greater harmony and internal peace to prevail.
We all have our personal battles. There's a constant pressure from work, family duties, relationships, moral duties and internal struggles as we and try to take pleasure from life. Good things are worth fighting for so we need to make this a priority - the rest, we have to assess and let go if it's not worth our using up our energy on.
One such battle that I've fought in 2015, is against a large corporation that has been all-consuming for pretty much the whole year. Has it been worth it? In some regards it has. I have learned so much about myself, the symptoms of stress and how they affect our wellbeing - and the irony is that this teaching has all been through constant battling with this large adversary. I have a lot more to learn, but maybe this has all been a gift for me to now use my newfound knowledge and pass this on to others.
Shell Shock
During the First World War, when trench warfare took the lives of so many in battle, many more soldiers were suffering stress through the constant shelling from above and the threat of being blown up from below. This is when we first head of the term 'Shell Shock'. A lot of soldiers, displaying the symptoms - disorientated and confused, were actually executed by their own because their actions displayed a lack of moral fibre in the superior's view and often thought to be a deliberate tactic for desertion. Interestingly, the soldiers deserting their posts were shown little remorse - but higher ranking officers showing similar stress-related symptoms were often excused as their diagnosis related to a seemingly 'higher, more cerebral and upper class' affliction of the nerves.
This nervous disposition diagnosis has been shown to exist in the highly competitive business environments of the 20th and 21st century, notably among city traders, bankers and professionals working is a mostly sedentary role - but can also be said to afflict any of those working within the monetary system.
Back To Basics
The Japanese have discovered a form of therapy early on in the 20th century that can help rehabilitate those suffering with emotional stress. The process is to remove the sufferer from any stimulation through isolation with only their thoughts to deal with for a week. Following on from that, a programme of only light processes (like writing a blog) are given, to allow the thoughts to flow. After a period of reflection, heavy physical processes are introduced (like garden clearing or chopping wood). Tools on how better to deal with the emotions are introduced throughout and the satisfaction/rewards gained through enduring arduous tasks allows the individual to move forward into the final stages. It is at this point where re-integration into society facilitates the rehabilitated person to partake in regular life again but with the new tools of mindfulness, meditation and pulling on purpose-driven responses as apposed to the emotional ones, that allow greater harmony and internal peace to prevail.
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