Before you even feel the searing pain of touching a hot stove, your nervous system sets off a reflex that causes you to withdraw your arm and hand in an instant. This amazing reflex all takes place before the pain signal even gets to the brain! It’s great for defence and preventing further damage, but did you know that this withdrawal reflex can hold us back from our magnificence?
In life, we seem to reflexively retreat from all unpleasant sensations, just as our nervous system withdraws our hand from the hot stove. While protective in one way, our reticence to experience the uncomfortable can stifle growth.
If we continually withdraw and numb ourselves to the world and try to exist in a comfortable cocoon of warmth, abundant food, little strenuous exertion and superficial relationships, then we rob ourselves of the deep gift discomfort brings – insight.
Unlike knowledge, facts and regurgitated opinions, insight has value. It is valuable because it is your unique perspective on a situation that comes from within.
What Stops Us From Gaining Insight
Most of our educational structures squash insight because they squash creativity. From a young age, we are taught to conform. We learn not to put our hand up because our answer might be wrong. We learn that the information from the external sources is important and our creative insight isn’t. We become disempowered.
We are taught that pain and discomfort are always bad and should be feared. The solution that society offers is to numb your mind/body to the rich sensations of life, which includes pain. The pills and procedures we are offered quite literally dim our ability to feel. Pain, joy, sadness, gratitude… They are all numbed.
Insight is hard-won. It’s only when we are asked the hard questions and encouraged to come up with our own answers that we generate insight. It is most often found on the far side of discomfort. To gain insight, to gain empowerment it helps to lean in and be present with whatever we are feeling.
Pain Teaches Us Insight
Pain can be our greatest teacher. It pulls is into the present moment, if forces us to focus on the rich texture of our own experience, to be creative, to be resourceful. Our ability to move from victim of life to creator of our own magnificence is predicated on how much we can embrace the gift of discomfort and generate insight.
For the body pains you don’t wish to numb but to fix from the root, find a vitalistic Chiropractor who will use a holistic approach that enables you to get the most out of your life.
Peak Chiropractic Centre located in Claremont are family-friendly chiropractors focused on relieving aches, pains and posture correction. We offer in-house X-Ray facilities.
