Journaling

In today's world, the progressives in the psychological community have usurped the term Journaling. In days past, it used to mean the writing down of one's adventure - usually as one traveled. It was therefore natural to convert it over New Age psycho-speak.

Journaling is a very powerful tool. For those whose adventure of choice is the path of personal growth and development, we might say that Journaling is nearly indispensable.

The Human Mind/Brain

In order to understand what Journaling is we must first begin to understand the human mind . . . at least in a mechanical way. Our concerns here are primarily with the left and right cerebral cortex, commonly called the left and right brain, respectively. These two hemispheres do the yeoman's portion of the work we normally think of as mental.

The left brain is logical, mathematical, verbal, rational and linear. It is where we think about things, plan, and make lists.

The right brain is feeling, intuitive, creative, tonal, emotional and nonlinear. This is where we fret . . . and chew on the meaty emotional stuff we can't let go of.

These two hemispheres were designed to do a number of things. All those are not a part of this paper.

Errors in Function

For our purposes, we are concerned with a commonly seen improper usage of this mind/machine. Often, most likely due to lack of proper training, humans get into the habit of chewing on stuff mentally. By chewing, what is meant is the taking of a thought or a concern and rolling it over and over, around and around, in the mind. This kind of redundancy is antipurpose, as the mind does not work well when used as a squirrel-cage. Indeed, when used in this manner, it actually short-circuits. One reason it goes awry is because the ambient noise level becomes too loud in the mind - due to this redundancy. This frequently causes the individual to think HARDER (louder).

The mind works best when it is as a calm pond. And, thinking is most powerful when we think with a FEATHER, rather than a HAMMER.

The Stress of Life

Our body takes the brunt of this self-imposed mental stress. The short-circuiting causes active viscerosomatic reflexes to be set up. A reflex arc is established, sending sparks underneath the back of the head. Right brain emotional concerns reflex to the under side of the right occiput. Left brain concerns reflex to the left occiput. In their initial phases, those reflexes activate the neurolymphatic reflexes for the eyes. In the later phases, the more chronic and long term phases, this building reflex bed expands into the upper cervical soft tissue complex.

Regardless, these reflex beds develop into trigger points over time. And in this area, they cause eye pains and problems as well as headaches and neck pains. Stiffness or limited range of motion is a common experience with this syndrome, as these reflexes stimulate the fourth and fifth layer muscles - which subluxate the cervical spine (pull bones out of place). This in turn can cause a pinching of the nerves in that area of the spine, and subsequent dysfunction of the related glands, tissues, and organs.

Breaking the Cycle

Importantly, there is an intimate biomechanical relationship between the cervical and lumbar spines. This is called the Lovett Brother relationship. Simply, as first cervical goes, so goes fifth lumbar. And, as second cervical goes, so goes fourth lumbar, and so on. Many a Chiropractic Physician has fixed a low back crisis by adjusting a problem in the neck. The spine is a biomechanical chain. If we put a kink in one link of the chain, another must compensate.

Anti-kinky therapy is straightforward. To break the reflex arc, it is necessary to grind on these points with a bit of vigor. Ouch! Then, it is necessary to encourage the patient to reconsider their thinking habits. Notable scientific authorities are now suggesting that negative thinking, which adversely influences one's aura, is the cause of most mental and physical diseases in humans. Of greatest significance is the need to eliminate the squirrel-cage phenomena. Enter Journaling.

Journaling as Process

Journaling is about getting all that STUFF out of the head and onto paper. Get a loose leaf notebook, or such. Then, find a TOTALLY secure place to stash this Journal. In that your deepest and messiest concerns will go down on paper, you MUST have a safe place to stash this - free from prying eyes.

After that, it's just a matter of setting a small amount of time aside each day to Journal. Just write down everything of concern in your world. Some folks like to Journal first thing each morning, being sure to enter relevant dream sequences. Others wish to do a core dump at the end of the day, easing the path to sleep. Do what works for you!

Unexpected Gains

During Journal, a magical thing happens. Here we are, just writing away, not thinking about much - just writing. While we aren't paying attention, what we've written is being taken up by our eyes, into the visual processing centers in the brain, and on to the entire brain. WOW! Instead of a particular consideration being stuck in just one hemisphere, now the whole brain is working on the problem. This often brings a classic Ah Ha experience. The whole brain (working together) is profoundly more efficient at problem solving than either cortex alone.

When first beginning to Journal, set a good habit. Start by writing down the Big Stuff, the pressing and important stuff. If you find yourself writing about the weather and the niceties of the day, you can bet you are avoiding relationship with your internal processes. Early on, we usually see current STUFF coming out. Later, it's only natural for the Big-Old-Boogie-Men to pop up . . . you know, all those old, unresolved stresses from days gone by.

The Body/Mind

For those patients involved with ongoing Vertical Care, it is common to experience deeper stuff coming up to be processed, as their onion of stored stress gets peeled on down. Old stored toxins and old stored emotions come up and want to exit or leave the body. (Toxins are a different topic.) As this happens, there are two possibilities. First, an individual may be skilled or trained to properly handle their internal processing. Or, they may find that old stuff is Up-In-Their-Face . . . and if it's stuck, they're stuck. If and when this happens, it is IMPERRATIVE that the individual seeks the assistance of a person skilled in the deeper workings of the human mind.

There are many skilled individuals in the psychological community with a great diversity of approaches. Most can be of help. Psychotherapy, once the new kid on the block, now seems rather stodgy - when compared against some of the newer and more creative technical approaches.

Different Strokes

So many folks are on the fast track today, regarding personal growth and development. They have special, unique needs. It's not that they are mentally ill. They just want to off-load a lot of baggage . . . quickly. It would be inappropriate to pathologize such a person.

What is most important is to link up with a caretaker with whom you are very resonant. When first visiting, there should be a sense of: "This is easy." Within two or three visits (at the most), there ought to be a feeling that progress is being made - that the time is well spent. If this is not the case, either there is a mismatch between patient and caretaker, or the patient is among the most complex.

It's important not to lose sight of the fact that our consciousness is structured in our physiology. It's obvious. If we're having a bad day and don't feel good, our consciousness tends to be less clear and not as functional. We don't make decisions as well. Often at those times, our words can adversely effect our relationships.

The mind is not just in the head. It's in every cell in the body. Therefore, mental/emotional stresses are stored in various tissues all over the body. Many body-workers have the experience that as they unwind knots of stress from old accidents or injuries, emotions are released.

Hot Process

A number of well-intended individuals totally dedicated to being On The Path have been taken out of the picture as a result of going into deep denial about their lack of ability to handle this old material on their own. Often, they simply implode - or go into a kind of spontaneous combustion. It's not a pretty sight!

In any event, we must make hay while the sun shines. Never before on this planet has there been such a wonderful opportunity for personal growth and development.

Remember what the wise mechanic once said: "Use the tool for that which it is intended." Journaling is one very powerful tool!

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