Princess on board!

When we consider the most damaging and dangerous things to our health, we usually think of seriously toxic chemicals or getting run over by a bus. While these are certainly nasty for our health, they are not the biggest cause of poor health. No, the biggest cause of poor health is that voice in our heads that tells us we should be able to eat, drink, do whatever we want, whenever we want, and in whatever amount we want. This voice believes that the rules of life that apply to everyone else do not apply to us. We are impervious to the consequences because we are special. We should have whatever we want or need to feel ok. It is our right, and someone should meet that need right now.

This voice lives at the deepest core of our personality because it is the first voice we had.  It originates from the part of our brain called the brain stem.  This is the oldest and most primitive part of the brain.  It controls our basic survival instincts.  This is the only part of the brain that is completely developed when we are born and it dominates our first seven years of life.  The midbrain that understands emotions is closely tied to the brain stem and develops quickly in our early years.  The fore brain or higher brain develops more slowly and is not fully developed until after the age of 25.  The forebrain is the part that "thinks", that understands things like time and consequence.  (Yes, that is right, young people under the age of 25 do not have brains that fully cognize and relate to consequences.)

The brainstem is sometimes called the reptilian brain, because it makes choices similar to those a reptile makes.  A reptile has no problem eating its own young.  It is only concerned with getting its own needs met by any means possible.  A reptile has no concept of value for others except to the extent they serve its needs.  As much as we love to project adult characteristics onto our children, they are like reptiles until around the age of seven.  Their brains simply are not grown enough to have the ability to understand anything outside their own needs and wants.  They do no t have the ability to conceive that other people can hav e thoughts or feelings that are not about them.  They are the center of the universe and everything only exists to serve them.  Warning: Princess on board.

This self-centered thinking forms the basic core of every child.  Growing up is primarily the slow and painful process of gradually discovering that you are not the center of everything and you don't get to have whatever you want whenever you want it.  Most of us learn this reality in the family from ages 7 to 14 and intimately from ages14 to 21, and in the big world from 21 on.  But the little prince or princess inside never really gives up, it just goes underground (into the subconscious.)   It sneaks out whenever it can because it believes it is responsible for our survival.  After all it started as the primary early expression of our survival brainstem.

Here is where the real health problem arises.  Even though we get it beat into us (usually) that everyone "out there" is not going to put our wants and needs first, we compensate by trying to give ourselves whatever we want to feel good.  Unfortunately, a huge number of things that are bad for our health also make us feel good.  This is not a new problem either.  Just recently archeologists uncovered a 6000-year-old winery.  Ancient man's most prized possession, which would be buried with him in many cultures all over the world, was his beer mug.  We like things that help us block out the "painful" input form the world that tells us we are not the center of life.  Anything that blocks or distracts us from that pain is felt as good.

So what does a good job of blocking out that "pain"?  Alcohol, drugs, tobacco, sugar and excess carbs, overeating, falling "in love", any obsessive or compulsive behavior, risk taking and gambling, exercise, anger and rage, being overly busy or working excessively, anything there is a 12 step group for.  Of that list, the only items that might not be bad for your health are falling "in love" and exercising; and even they have negative health consequences at times.  (Ask Romeo and Juliet about the health consequences of falling in love.)

The real killer these days is the easy availability of some of the above mentioned items in the last 60 years.  Never before in the history of mankind have so many had easy access to so much unhealthy food, alcohol, drugs, and tobacco.  Never before have we had such massive cultural persuasion pushing us to use these items.  Never before have we had a mass indoctrination system (public education and media) convincing us that we should always feel good...if we don't then there must be something wrong with us.  THIS STUFF IS KILLING US!

If you want health, then you will have to step out of the mainstream box and into a totally different lifestyle.  You will have to wean yourself from the feeling numbing foods, drugs, and activities and make the leap into becoming grown up...not all at once, but a little at a time.  We have to accept that we are not special; that there are NO SPECIAL PEOPLE, only special relationships.  Not one of us here is the center of the universe.  We have to kick our inner Princess off the bus so that we can grow up and become Kings and Queens in our lives by shaping our own destiny instead of expecting others to shape our destiny for us to our specifications.  We have to stop listening to that little voice that says: "Go ahead, you deserve that dozen doughnuts.  Besides, it's only just this once.  We can be good tomorrow."

Sorry, your body does not forgive your health transgressions any more than your bank forgives your spending sprees.  Your health is like a bank account.  You only have so much vital life force in your account - you can either build your account up or you can spend it down.  Just being alive uses up a bit of that account every day.  Are you going to use it up even faster to "feel better" in easy ways?  Or are you going to make the effort to generate good feelings through life skill building and healthy relationships?  Skills and relationships increase your vital life force.  Avoiding the truth by trying to hold on to the illusions created by your incompletely developed brain when you were young wastes your life force. 

You can do it.  It takes time, patience, and a lot of effort - but from what I see, it is the only choice we have.  Anything less creates early physical and emotional degeneration.  So stop listening to the voice of the little Princess from your reptilian brain.  She is lying to you.  The price you have to pay to do things her way is too high and will not succeed in the end anyway.  You can still get what you want and need, but through respectful connection and personal creation.  It does work and it is sustainable.

 

 

david@fairoakshealth.com

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About Dr. DeLapp

Dr. DeLapp has been a philosopher, non-force Chiropractor, medical intuitive, and health innovator for over 30 years.  He began experimenting with  medical intuition in 1972 while studying physics at UC Davis.  In addition to physics he designed and completed an individual major in the philosophy and psychology of education.  Shortly after he choose to pursue a career in the only truly health oriented profession available at that time, Chiropractic.  He graduated with honors in 1981 with his doctorate and opened a private practice. 
Since that time he has continued his research into the effects of consciousness and learning on health. 
He developed the Biomagnetic Retraining system for correcting movement abnormalities. 
Since 1991 he has focused on developing a powerful system for uncovering and assisting the mind-body connection in health and personal growth.  The in-depth coaching, guided by the subconscious direction from the body, is called Heartflow and the simpler mind-body retraining for health and unfoldment he has named Gracework.  Both are available at Fair Oaks Health.

Dr David DeLapp DC
Chiropractor

Ellen Flowers FGM
Spiritual Life Coach

 

Somatic Therapies

 

Lorena Morales