CONTENTS
How could this be clearer?!?!?
Please decide and commit!
Run yourself between these two limits
Now suppose you had a friend who...
What might one say to oneself?
What might one do?
My commitment
____________________________________________________________
HOW COULD THIS BE CLEARER?!?!?
How can I make this clear?
We cannot continue to abuse our bodies with stress, bad substances, insufficient care.
What about that is not understandable?!!!????
We have to, for the body to function well, keep it in homeostasis and to do pacing (peacing), as this is a marathon we are running in life, not some short sprint.
We must, to manage ourselves for health and longevity, nefer act with pressure and stress except where there is no other alternative, such as in emergencies. And we must realize that there are very, very, very few real emergencies. We must not engage our bodies and our thoughts as if there is an emergency when there isn't, for the damage is not worth it (especially when the behavior really has no bonus to it).
PLEASE DECIDE AND COMMIT!
Please, please decide to do this.
One problem is that we actually think that stress is ok and that bad substances serve us as a shortcut to feeling better and that we can get away with things without ill effect, and we think that we are creating comfort (when we're not really). But those are all false beliefs, beliefs that could kill us, either literally or in aliveness and energy.
We have got to implement "stop signs", stopping all of these when they are not contributing: a sense of hurry, a tightness or holding in the body, any bad feelings.
To stop bad feelings we should never use "shortcuts" such as eating or drugs or even distractions. We should instead address the belief that is underneath that bad feeling and not allow that thought to rule. And in the process we must correct the misbelief and replace it with a correct one. And we must apply our relaxation, breathing, and centering skills instead of using the shortcuts. That plus building a set of beliefs that are correct and eliminating the harmful ones are the ways to experience long term energy and healthy thinking that lead to happiness.
RUN YOURSELF BETWEEN THESE LIMITS
Imagine a graph, with time on the bottom and level of stress and exertion on the body going up the side of the graph.
Then imagine that you've determined what is a reasonable range of "stress" to allow. Suppose that you had set the higher line at the point where the stress is felt and where you need to look at relaxing and recentering. Suppose that above that line, the mind stops functioning well (under stress) and that that is unacceptable, unless there is an emergency warranting it (such as someone who will stab you). Suppose that above that line you see that the tension will stress the body and the chemicals generated by the body will be toxic to the body if accumulated - so you decide not to allow yourself to go beyond that point.
Of course, exertion that is healthy, such as exercise would be allowed, as there is no long term toxic effect, but, instead, there is a healing effect.
And one could say that the lower line might be some form of lethargy or low energy, which also is not conducive to aliveness or health.
NOW SUPPOSE YOU HAD A FRIEND WHO...
Suppose that you were committed to running your life well. Then you would be sure that 99% of the time you were running between those lines, quickly correcting when exertion and stress were too high, so that you could have the body return to healthy functioning (which is when it is in homeostasis).
Suppose you say a friend who had only one speed: Rush. And that friend had no sense of time (not seeing that there is plenty of time, except maybe in a real emergency). Wouldn't you confront your friend and ask him/her to "pace" him/herself, as it is unhealthy to rush (or even to feel rushed) and that it is better to
use time wisely than to try to rush on crappola?
What if your friend were eating excess sugar to get "up" or to quell anxiety? Wouldn't you suggest to the friend to use the healthy means of quelling anxiety (such as meditation, relaxation, deep breathing, writing out the thought and correcting it, using coping and comforting statements - use search engine to find on this site)?
What if your friend were using other harmful "shortcuts", such as tranquilizers or other drugs? Would you confront him/her and suggest that it would be good to learn self-control enough to wait and to use healthy means to calming down?
What if that person kept really odd hours, often exhausting oneself and also throwing one's time clock off? Wouldn't you suggest that he/she be very diligent about a set time for bed and arising, so that the body can keep its systems in homeostasis and function better? Wouldn't you suggest that his/her emotional wipeouts are often caused by this, by going to a super low state of resourcefulness?
What if your friend somehow was often creating "upset" in his/her life and never finishing off correcting his/her erroneous beliefs that had to be there or there wouldn't be such an upset? Would you confront and urge him/her to handle the key beliefs that were creating the upsets over and over and over, with great damage to the psyche but also inevitably the body?
I might even enlist the help of the (mythical) Behavior Police. who would then issue tickets for violations of the health of the body.
What if that friend were you? Would you take your own advice and become an expert in the practice of maintaining homeostasis at an excellent level?
WHAT MIGHT ONE SAY TO ONESELF?
There is no hurry, no pressure. I can only do this at the pace that is reasonable, except for emergencies, which are very, very few. Hurrying and pressuring myself never works. I am calm and I proceed at a good, peaceful pace. (Pacing = peacing, in a sense.)
WHAT MIGHT ONE DO?
I now check my body. I relax my face, as I go through each muscle, from my jaw through my temples. I now relax my body, as I check to see if it is relaxed enough, and if it isn't, I relax it!
MY COMMITMENT
___ I see the value of maintaining homeostasis in my body.
___ I hereby now and forever commit to
___ Treat my body with great care
___ Never abuse it
___ Never create any chaos (as that wacks out the body for no good reason)
___ I need not be perfect about this, but I commit to being diligent about this.
This I commit to on this ____ day of _________________, _____
Signed: _____________________________
mfg tolerances that work...not perfection
