Perscription for sanity.
I don't know why I expect people to act like rational humans, not brainless jackals...in fact, jackals have a lot more discernment than some people, but I digress...
The constant barrage of idiocy, hatred, bullshit, lies, propaganda, fear mongering, and manipulation that I see in this so-called 'civilized' country STILL makes my neck muscles tense.
We have to develop a different way to cope. We can't all pull the blankets over our heads, 'forget' to vote or throw up our hands and say 'what good will it do?".
Here's a beginning of a plan-
1- lower our expectations- that others are as rational or intelligent as we are, or that they actually WANT to learn.
2- be aware that there are people who are pre-disposed to follow the herd, to revere the biggest, loudest or meanest; because on a primitive level, maybe thousands of years ago (or at war), he might have helped protect the tribe. Know when you're seeing or talking to one of those tribal types who will NEVER admit you might have a point. Not worth your energy, but may be worth caution.
3- learn to tune some of it out, selectively, the way you tune out the barking dog down the street, lawnmowers, or most of the other cars on the highway.
4-FOCUS- practice, just the way you do when driving- on what to focus on. If you were driving and everything on the side of the road grabbed your attention, you would soon become road kill yourself.
5-Be alert, but give yourself a zen level of alertness- below the peak of adrenalin surge. Our bodies were not meant to be angry or afraid all the time. If you are, your body chemistry actually begins to break down. Ever have one of those times you're so worked up you can hardly speak? Once you tap into the primitive lizard brain area of your mind, discernment goes out the window- your body reacts to imagined threats the same as if it was real. You wouldn't sit in the drive and gun your car at full throttle on a regular basis, would you?
6- Give yourself a break...don't go to sleep mad- it's like pulling into the drive at 30 mph and hoping the wall will stop the car. (yes, I use a lot of car analogies, because it's a common point of reference for most of us ).
7 Try to minimize using other chemicals to calm down- I said minimize, not give it up! Otherwise you short circuit that internal burglar/alert system. Imagine if your dog was barking like crazy because someone was trying to break into your house. You wouldn't run over and inject the dog with tranquilizers. You'd see IF there is something, THEN, if not, try to get him to calm down. Give yourself that same care. If you like that stuff; pot, alcohol...think of it more like a treat, and not a safety blanket.
7 BREATHE!- I know it's a cliché and sometimes people use that word as a substitute for 'fuck off', but sometimes when you feel yourself getting worked up, if you take a moment, you might find you're either holding your breath or breathing shallow. It's probably something we learned on a cellular level to keep predators from hearing us. If you just take a moment and breathe deep, you'd be amazed at how your head can clear up or the way it alerts your brain to cut back on the 'we're gonna die!' surge. I have to remind myself to use a meditation technique I learned years ago, to just count my breaths- but we have other ways to do that-watching our fish in the aquarium, petting the dog, just sitting and staring out into the yard, for some, it's praying, meditating...
A relative tried to tell me that meditation was a way to let the devil in....I said 'what do you think you're doing with those rosary beads, or all the droning rituals? Or when you go fishing?
Think about it.
The constant barrage of idiocy, hatred, bullshit, lies, propaganda, fear mongering, and manipulation that I see in this so-called 'civilized' country STILL makes my neck muscles tense.
We have to develop a different way to cope. We can't all pull the blankets over our heads, 'forget' to vote or throw up our hands and say 'what good will it do?".
Here's a beginning of a plan-
1- lower our expectations- that others are as rational or intelligent as we are, or that they actually WANT to learn.
2- be aware that there are people who are pre-disposed to follow the herd, to revere the biggest, loudest or meanest; because on a primitive level, maybe thousands of years ago (or at war), he might have helped protect the tribe. Know when you're seeing or talking to one of those tribal types who will NEVER admit you might have a point. Not worth your energy, but may be worth caution.
3- learn to tune some of it out, selectively, the way you tune out the barking dog down the street, lawnmowers, or most of the other cars on the highway.
4-FOCUS- practice, just the way you do when driving- on what to focus on. If you were driving and everything on the side of the road grabbed your attention, you would soon become road kill yourself.
5-Be alert, but give yourself a zen level of alertness- below the peak of adrenalin surge. Our bodies were not meant to be angry or afraid all the time. If you are, your body chemistry actually begins to break down. Ever have one of those times you're so worked up you can hardly speak? Once you tap into the primitive lizard brain area of your mind, discernment goes out the window- your body reacts to imagined threats the same as if it was real. You wouldn't sit in the drive and gun your car at full throttle on a regular basis, would you?
6- Give yourself a break...don't go to sleep mad- it's like pulling into the drive at 30 mph and hoping the wall will stop the car. (yes, I use a lot of car analogies, because it's a common point of reference for most of us ).
7 Try to minimize using other chemicals to calm down- I said minimize, not give it up! Otherwise you short circuit that internal burglar/alert system. Imagine if your dog was barking like crazy because someone was trying to break into your house. You wouldn't run over and inject the dog with tranquilizers. You'd see IF there is something, THEN, if not, try to get him to calm down. Give yourself that same care. If you like that stuff; pot, alcohol...think of it more like a treat, and not a safety blanket.
7 BREATHE!- I know it's a cliché and sometimes people use that word as a substitute for 'fuck off', but sometimes when you feel yourself getting worked up, if you take a moment, you might find you're either holding your breath or breathing shallow. It's probably something we learned on a cellular level to keep predators from hearing us. If you just take a moment and breathe deep, you'd be amazed at how your head can clear up or the way it alerts your brain to cut back on the 'we're gonna die!' surge. I have to remind myself to use a meditation technique I learned years ago, to just count my breaths- but we have other ways to do that-watching our fish in the aquarium, petting the dog, just sitting and staring out into the yard, for some, it's praying, meditating...
A relative tried to tell me that meditation was a way to let the devil in....I said 'what do you think you're doing with those rosary beads, or all the droning rituals? Or when you go fishing?
Think about it.
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