Listen and love. Ignorance is our enemy. We all share a different perspective in this reality, but it still comes together as this one reality. In school and maps, they speak of multiple oceans, but is there not one large connected ocean? If we pollute one ocean, won’t it spread around the world? If a volcano erupts, will the ashes not be spread throughout the atmosphere? Humans, or rather, life is no different. Life is not something we possess. It is not ours to give or take. Rather, we share the experience of life. We share a different view of this grand experience called life.
Even if one beach is calm and clean to an observer, there may be a storm on another coast that is fearsome to another observer, and will eventually change the seemingly calm beach. Sometimes a threat may not be apparent or may not appear to affect us, but that doesn’t mean to ignore it, for it may affect us soon. Imagine if a storm is coming and we are safe but a neighboring town is at risk of flooding. It is our responsibility to help them prepare. If not, we can’t say it is their problem or blame them if they must take refuge in our homes.
Is this us?
The real illusion is separation of “You” and “I”, because ultimately, we are one. Just like the oceans or the skies. If we could see a little bit of ourselves in all things (not only people), discrimination and suffering that we put on ourselves would give way to compassion and love.
If you take anything from this, let it be a reminder to see ourselves in others. Always try to remember the Golden Rule of treating others how we would like to be treated – not just when it is convenient to us.
Why is gut health important? There are many reasons – and the most obvious might be the least important. Most often when people think of gut health, they think of diets or weight loss, but a healthy gut means much, much more. Your gut is your second brain!
Let’s take a deeper look… The human body contains roughly 13-30 trillion cells. The actual number is unknown and changes with age and other factors, as well as who did the calculation. We are always discovering more about the body, but the important thing to remember is that these cells are communicating in various ways in order to coordinate the many functions of the body. A trillion is a big number – hard to fathom for most people. Imagine if you had a million dollars, a million times – that would be 1 trillion.
With tens of trillions of cells in the body (containing our
DNA, or made from it), it is truly miraculous how things stay organized in
there for us to survive and live as a coherent human being. But here is what’s
more amazing – we have more bacteria in our gut than the rest of our body
combined. It was once believed that we have over 10 times as many bacteria
(that gets into the 100 trillion range!) but that number is being revised as science
progresses and we continue to discover more about the body. All of these are
sending signals, communicating with the cells in our body, and interacting closely
with the nervous system as well. Regardless of the actual number count, we can
start to have an appreciation for why gut health is so important.
Feel with your gut AND your brain
You may have heard the saying “Trust your gut feeling”
before, and for good reason. Your gut processes signals without the biased
inputs from the pre-frontal cortex (the thinking part of the brain) or the lower/mid
brain – sometimes referred to as the reptilian brain which is in charge of our
survival instincts and fight/flight responses.
Communication between the gut and nervous system is a two way street – anxiety and stress can cause indigestion as much as indigestion can give us feelings of anxiety and stress. Eventually it becomes hard to distinguish between what is cause and what is effect. That’s why it’s so important to be aware and consciously interrupt these self-propelling cycles that don’t serve us and keep the patterns that are healthy.
This means that gut health is a part of mental health.
Keeping a healthy gut means more than just having a healthy diet. It means to eat
under the right conditions so your body can absorb nutrients and create balance
for the nervous system. It means that we are aware of our food choices and making
choices beyond the initial impulses (this is where we get to use the brain’s
intelligence over what the gut craves.) For example, if you eat while angry,
your body will not activate the proper relaxation responses, enzymes, and
everything that goes with properly digesting foods.
And lastly, your gut actually produces many of the brain’s
neurotransmitters. It is responsible for many of the signals that our brain is
capable of transmitting in the first place. So you can begin to see why it is
regarded as the second brain. Many cases of anxiety, depression, and other challenges
for mental health can be corrected when the gut environment is in balance either
by diet or by avoiding things that can destroy our gut biome like antibiotics
which kill both good and bad bacteria in the gut. The issues are not in the
brain, but in the gut. If you ever experience anything like brain fog or stronger
feelings like anxiety or depression, try taking a look at how you are eating.
In life we have many decisions to make. Everything we do is the result of a choice – conscious or subconscious. One of the most important choices we can make doesn’t have to do with our actions, but has to do with our attitude – our state of being. Regardless of what our actions are, we also choose an attitude – a mental state to go with it. The difference between a positive attitude and a negative attitude is the difference between success and failure, motivation and depression. Choosing a positive outlook is a simple decision (so is a negative outlook) that can happen for some people without thinking about it. For others, it might take practice. It is completely normal to have mixed feelings, confusion, self-doubt, anxiety, and, fear. This is the natural disposition of human physiology and the fight/flight responses of the nervous system.
Once we understand that, we can accept it. We can understand the source of our feelings and from there choose a positive outlook. For most people, things can always be better, and they can also be worse. It is important to realize that we are not subject to our emotions or impulses. A good place to start being positive is practicing gratitude. Try naming 3 things that you are grateful for. Another great practice is to list 3 things that you like about yourself.
Here’s mine for today: I am grateful for: life, my health, and the ability to share my knowledge. I am wise. I am strong. I am capable.
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Halloween is around the corner and because irony is one of
my more favored humors, I wanted to leave everyone a positive reminder; wearing
masks is fun, but being yourself is best.
But as I am writing this, I came across an interesting tidbit. October 29th
is international internet day. I find this fitting because the internet
is a symbol of communication and expression. The internet up many new
channels of communication and expression. It gives us the ability to
wear infinite masks. It also shows us how interconnected everything
really is. We can open up portals to speak with and see friends and
family from across the planet. Or we can communicate anonymously with
millions of people. We can access information stored from incredible
distances and carry it in our pockets. So I guess the other message for
this post is let’s remember not to take the internet for granted and
most of what we see online is a mask.
Some people worry about being judged by others, some people judge themselves too much. I fall into the latter category. As a child it bothered me that I would not be accepted into schools because of my hair – and when I did, I would be teased and get into fights with other children. It took a while for it to even occur to me to change myself for acceptance (which I tried and felt miserable).
You have to accept yourself before others can.
I’m more of the person to always ask “why?”. I accepted being different and stopped caring what other people think. Instead, I cared more about what I think, and set high standards upon myself. There’s nothing wrong with this but it’s important to remember not to judge yourself too harshly. Above all else, you have to accept yourself before others can.
We may want to be accepted into a certain circle, or simply appear a
certain way to others. There are many reasons for wanting to wear a
mask. Some believe that we are always wearing a mask. Regardless, we
know what comes naturally and comfortably for us. This would be our
“default mask” and nothing is better than this one. If it is a mask, it
is one that does not create stress for us when we wear it, rather we
find joy in being and expressing ourselves. Be yourself. Love yourself.
So yes, of course that means you can still be yourself AND dress up for Halloween.
We already know that everything is energy in different patterns that create our perceived reality. Everything from spoken language, solid objects, wi-fi signals, visible light and heat. Our thoughts are also patterns of energy that have an influence on our body and mind.
Be aware of your thoughts because every thought is like a repetition in an exercise for the brain. Know what patterns you are making stronger, and when a mental exercise (i.e. a thought is no longer healthy).
