Whose body?

"The essence of the principle of the Uncarved Block is that things in their original simplicity contain their own natural power,  power that is easily spoiled and lost when that simplicity is changed."  from the Tao of Pooh.

Over the last couple of decades, there has been steady growth in the field of complimentary and alternative medicine and it has certainly become more widely accepted than it was 20 years ago, but what exactly does that mean to the individual?

Well, take a look at the websites of a few alternative practitioners – what do they say to you between the lines of assurances?  Are they intimating you should hang off their every word and trust their familiar patter since it’s now become ‘mainstream’ or do they say ‘hang on a minute, you can read this blurb, but do you really need it?  Couldn’t you work out the answer to your health questions simply by listening to what your body’s been trying to tell you for ages?’  These therapies may not be pumped full of synthetic drugs but are they really any different in their approach to that of the allopathic doctor?

Well, the process of standardising and homogenising the alternative health movement is now almost complete and a good few therapy genres can even produce evidence based studies to prove their viability – that’s good surely...?  Well yes, I guess that means these therapies can be relied upon, within the boundaries of their respective red tape, to carry some responsibility for our health, therefore we don’t have to try too hard to keep in shape (you know, like relying on your doctor!).  And yes, like visiting your GP, there are generally some benefits to be gained from anyone worth their salt, but the question remains – how much of this could you do yourself with a little effort? 

The trouble is that everything is made to appear so complicated that we are all led to believe we couldn’t possibly know what is good for us and how to take care of ourselves.  A few thousand years ago, it was a case of survival of the fittest.  If you didn’t use the instinct you were born with, you just didn’t survive.  Of course, there have always been people who have had the ability to help and heal others in a naturally gifted way, but equally, there have been just as many ready to usurp that human need in return for a tidy sum.

These days, as soon as we enter this life, we’re told what is good for us – not much room for individuality and certainly not for instinct.  It seems from the outset, we are being conditioned to get used to operating within rules, whatever we are doing, but who benefits?  It is highly likely that operating by the rules of others, where our own wellbeing is concerned, will gradually erode  our ability to decide what is right for us because we have  a) forgotten what our own instinct feels like and  b) how to trust it. 

In actual fact, nature has installed various mechanisms within us all to enable us to make good choices for ourselves, but these usually go unheeded as the stimuli of western civilisation makes all but the well disciplined fail to notice their intent.  So, how do we go about deciding if we want or need to seek out the help of a therapist?  The following check list may be of assistance ...

• Why do you think you need to see someone?
• Have you done everything possible to tackle the problem yourself?
• Are you looking for a quick fix or a long term solution/program?
• How much are you just looking for emotional support?

You would be forgiven for thinking at this point that I am trying to dissuade you from seeing a therapist at all – not so, there are times when we could all use a catalyst or a conduit.  What I am suggesting is to be mindful of why and to stop being so willing to hand over responsibility to someone else.  After all, it’s not uncommon for some to pay a visit to the docs for a diagnosis, even a prescription, with no intention of taking the recommended medication, because they had already decided upon their own course of action.  For some, it would be nice to do similar with complimentary medicine but because the protocol is not so clear cut, we feel we are not armed with enough information to make a good decision about treatment.  This is when instinct comes in handy.

Another set of hurdles can present when we have long-standing chronic ‘niggles’ and we’ve made a decision to find the cause.  Each therapist has his/her own preferred angle, indeed some really are prepared to play detective to work out the pieces of your particular puzzle, but who’s to say they’re not just treating more symptoms ...?  The only person who will know the answer to that question is you – usually some way down the line when you realise you’re still not as full of energy/health as you should be, just a few £’s lighter.  Where was instinct when you needed it?

Unless you have diligently logged your own life history and included all relevent health information, it can be quite difficult for anyone to get to the bottom of your malfunction.  These days, more and more elaborate layers of protocol are being brought in to provide an off-the-shelf toolkit for the serious therapist, so in theory, they can’t fail but it can take quite a commitment from the you, the client, to pursue a protracted course of treatment - and to have deep pockets.  So, lets go back to the beginning ... how much can you do for yourself? 

You could ...

•     Remove all forms of stress from your life
•     Remove all blocking factors to good health (mental, physical & emotional)
•     Find what makes you truly happy!  

You see, I believe that if we all learned as much as possible about the way we tick, and, more to the point, took action upon that knowledge, we’d be doing far more for our personal health and happiness.  The fact is that if we don’t adopt a maintenance routine of our own, based upon our own instinctive truths, time will ensure we embrace poor health, poor quality of life and early effects of old age, not to mention being a burden upon society (how willing are you to rely upon the ‘yoof’ of today to care for you?). 

 

If care of the self was something parents and teachers passed on to children from the outset, it would not be so difficult to pursuade people that in actual fact, this is what we are meant to do.   If we do not care for the vessel which holds our spirit, we are not being respectful to ourselves and can not flourish on all levels.  

 

The reason we are here is to simply be happy – life is not meant to be a struggle.  Honing and trusting our natural instinct means we stand a far better chance of achieving a long and happy life, guided by our own personal truth. 

One step too far ...

The efforts of the powers that be to regulate complementary health services, combined with the control applied by the governing bodies within each profession go a long way to ensure that treatment given within these limiting guidelines will not be wholly effective.  

For instance, if you go to see an osteopath who is governed by a strict code of conduct which dictates that in patient assessment, the practitioner does not consider the patients' emotions as bearing relation to the root of the problem, and treatment is based upon symptoms presenting alone, instead of guiding the patient to look further back for the emotional tensions which could well have pre-empted the presenting symptoms, then what's to say the treatment will work or hold?  (i.e. if the root cause if not addressed directly, the situation could well recur).  There may well be, and frequently is, an improvement, but in the longer term is the patient really encouraged to take responsibility for him/herself and to dig deeper within for the answer?  I'm afraid not - in fact anything deemed to be outside treatment protocol is usually referred to the GP, thus sowing a seed in the mind of the patient of something more serious ... or 'nasty', and we all know the power of negative thoughts in even the most unsuspecting individual. 


So, professions such as osteopaths or chiropractors, in their efforts to be scientific and ethical, take a rather separatist stance with treatment protocol, yet the likes of Candace Pert (Molecules of Emotion) and Bruce Lipton (Biology of Belief) have written much about how our thoughts can and do have a direct impact upon our physical form.  For instance, much research into longevity has shown that people in relationships (of any sort) have been shown to live longer, which would suggest that emotions do have a direct effect upon health and longevity.  I do wonder how much repeat business would actually be necessary if the emotional aspect of a condition was tackled at the outset.  I would guess that the influence of the 'nanny' state means that even in a complementary health profession, patients are still actively discouraged to trust their own instinct about anything - after all, it could just be toooo risky!


So yes, I am rather frustrated by what I see around me and the task of building up Joe Public's innate intuition seems ever more daunting.  It would seem that the 'powers that be' will continue to send their tendrils of negativity into the heart of any profession they can to suppress what really ought to come naturally to each of us.

Reflecting upon relationships

A phrase which holds dear to me is "nothing is itself without everything else".  This is true I feel, to a large extent, of western civilisation - we all need other people in some way to reflect back to us who we are as we experiment with the experiences of life.

Many feel it is impossible to live without frequent reassurance of who and where they are, even if it means staying in a defective relationship, whilst others choose to get by with only sporadic interaction with others.  However, although each of us have differing abilities to contribute to any interaction, we may choose to only contribute fully and with confidence those aspects of ourselves in which we excel or favour, therefore controlling the outcome.
 

As we weave our way through life, we scratch the surface of those we want to know and go about the task of discovering what aspects that other person contains to ultimately see whether enough edges and grooves fit comfortably with our own, and there is the possibility of some new growth.  There may be physical or visual traits we like to have around us more permanently, yet ignore or make fit the other aspects which we subconsciously know will only disappoint.  So a relationship based upon degrees of compromise is formed - perhaps the reality never quite becoming the dream.   A relationship can occur anywhere along the comfort scale and exist for many a year, depending upon the tenacity of those involved, but can growth occur if we suppress certain aspects of ourselves, including honesty?


We might choose to live alone (not daring to open the heart), carefully selecting those we wish to interact with who mirror our qualities of choice whilst concealing an aspect we'd like to ignore - dipping in and out of society just enough to maintain some sort of continuum.  However, the way life happens decrees that whoever we have contact with can and will, at some point, hold up the mirror, casting an incisive spotlight into our heart, bringing into stark relief that we would choose to hide. 


In my opinion, for any sort of relationship to be built and survive, there needs to be an understanding that the union will provide mutual support to withstand the challenges and effort that life itself requires, with regular input.  Personally, I doubt the existence of Mount Nirvana where a free ride is guaranteed all the way down the far side to a blissful ending.  I think relationships of any kind will always be a work in progress, just as long as we remain willing to learn, lessons continually being repeated until, at best, understanding and harmony are achieved.  By practicing humility and acceptance, the stout-hearted can ride any emotional storm and emerge stronger and a good deal more philosophical, but a sense of humour is essential.

Is Ego really such a bad guy?

Every now and then, we hear someone declare they are going to 'slay' their ego and be for ever free of it's unruly, disruptive tactics.  But stop for a moment and consider how ego may be of use.

When we are young and carefree, we think nothing of what makes life happen and how we move through it.  Puberty arrives, along with this thing we label 'ego' and wham!,  suddenly we start to feel and respond much more acutely - life takes on a certain intensity.  Those around teenagers know how difficult these times are to deal with and the human dynamic constantly shifts as all parties try to get by.  

Notwithstanding the obvious negative aspects of being a teenager, let's consider the upside of this ego evolution.  Underneath the physical transformation, the ego tempts, aggravates and distorts its way into existence, growing in stature and effect, but keeping us safe in its' own way.  (Keeping one safe is, of course, to keep safe within one's own learned fears and boundaries, so it's an individual interpretation of safe.)  So, the ego provides an independent safety net (especially useful for the individual who may never have felt secure within their family unit) and it does much to assist the very necessary momentum needed to move from being a teenager into an adult.  Indeed, it could be said that the strength of that young ego could do much to determine how successful someone becomes as an adult.  

Eventually, the time comes when the young adult reaches a time of greater sensitivity and begins to question how appropriate ego still is.  What does it have to offer?  Is this ego-driven path still appropriate?  For those who have a defined ego as part of their blueprint, the enormity of the task of taming 'the beast' becomes apparent and a new phase of life begins.  

After many years of questioning what I have read of ego and learned of my own, I've come to the conclusion that instead of trying to dismiss that which has propelled me, I should be grateful and treat it with a certain respect.  Yes, I realise that my ego can still lead me down the 'wrong' road (although I don't believe any choice is actually wrong), but if I am simply to accept that it will always be present, like an unruly, mischievous teenager, I at least know what I am dealing with and what to keep an eye out for.  So, instead of wasting time rebuking what will always be around me, I will harness the vast energy of my rampant ego and let it pull me along into the work I need to be doing - a sort of energetic husky dog team!  Wahoo!