I am sure you already know LOTS of things the so called “experts” get wrong.
I hear you (and agree).
Today I am going to focus on one thing that bugs me a bit, because it gives people the wrong impression of themselves and stops them being as awesome as they have the potential to be.
My goal in life is to help people (and myself) become better humans – full to the brim of awesomeness.
And an important part of people being able to flex their true potential awesomeness is having the energy and health to do so.
Which brings us to today’s insight.
And something that I get fired up about – so I will do my best not to come across as a preachy evangelist, promising you a quick trip to the fires of hell if you don’t believe and agree with everything I say.
Let me just share my thoughts and observations (which I have built up over 26 years).
Firstly, I believe this about you and about me.
Our bodies and minds are freakishly intelligent (and can do stuff even the smartest amongst us can only guess at the ‘how’).
Our brains, and entire beings, are wired to be constantly learning, adapting, evolving, and figuring out how to live in harmony (symbiosis) with the environment, as it inevitably changes.
Our species has been doing this for 100’s of 1000’s of years.
And there are biological parts of us, which have probably been doing the figuring out stuff (i.e. evolving) for millions of years.
My first point: Mine and your body are not stupid.
They do not knowingly make mistakes.
Let me also add two other things to help set the scene…
1) In the forest, when a tree dies (because it was really old, or it got blown over in a storm, or got struck by lightning), it gets “returned to the soil” and eco-system compliments of a veritable army of bacteria, micro-organisms, fungi, worms, insects, and a host of other critters. This army did not cause the ‘death’ of the tree, but are the way nature operates within the ‘cycle of life’. No energy is lost, it just changes form.
2) At pretty much all house fires you will find this army of people doing their thing called ‘fire fighters’. Because there are always fire fighters at house fires, would we mistakenly assume that fire fighters are therefore the ’cause’ of fires?
Hold that thought, and now let’s dig a little deeper.
A common gift in Asia
Have any of you travelled to Bali and received the welcoming gift of “Bali Belly“?
The gift comes in 3 classic versions: 1) just pooping, 2) just puking, or 3) the double whammy (which I’m sure you can figure out).
My understanding of the most likely root cause is that we can eat the same stuff as the locals, but where they will not get sick, we do get sick, because we have different microbiome in our gut.
Out gut microbiome is good for digesting food in Australia for example, but not SE Asia. It does not have the right configuration or existence of the necessary micro-organisms to break down something new and different.
I think the same with everyone on the planet. The microbiome of someone in Asia is different from someone in Europe, whose is different from someone in Africa, whose is different from someone’s in South America, which is different from someone’s in Alaska.
So…
Since our bodies are highly intelligent, they can figure out what is toxic to the body (based on what it knows how to process).
Secondly, once it figures out something is toxic to its well-being, it has mechanisms – developed over 1000’s and 1000’s of years – to deal with it.
Pooping, puking and even sweating like a marathon runner crossing the Sahara Desert.
The body wants to get that stuff out as fast as possible, so it has the least amount of time to cause harm, and to stop toxins from traversing the gut lining and entering into the bloodstream.
Yahoo body!!!
Yes, it definitely sucks to puke and poop (especially at the same time ;-)), but it sure gets you back to feeling better within the least possible time, and back on with your life.
And now we get to the crux.
The bit where the “experts” get it 100% wrong.
Wrong, wrong, wrong and wrong
I am in love with my body and think it’s the most awesome thing I have been gifted.
I think it is super smart, and can do a whole lot of physical stuff at the macro and micro level that I am yet to fully figure out.
I also trust it has figured stuff out over 1000’s and 1000’s of years, so it is not just “winging” it.
So here is why this topic not only bugs me, but makes absolutely no sense.
Enter allopathic medicine (modern medicine highly driven by a pharmaceutical model of health).
The go-to “solution” in the allopathic handbook, when the body is trying to eliminate a toxin it deems harmful to our health is to STOP the pooping and puking.
This makes no sense to me at all.
The thinking is that if we suppress the symptoms (puking and pooping), then we are now “made well”.
The problem with this is it very unlikely to address the root cause (i.e. getting a toxin out of the body).
Unfortunately, this idea of ‘symptom suppression’ equaling good health is a paradigm most people adopt, or at the very least don’t consider questioning.
The downside being it stops us looking for what might actually be the ROOT CAUSE.
This is my passion when it comes to physical and mental health.
Trying to establish what the root cause (or root causes) is, rather than suppressing symptoms, and disrupting the chain-of-evidence (symptoms) to help us understand what is truly going on.
While I am on the subject, I will share my other ‘gripe’.
It is the over-use and over prescription of antibiotics, which wreak havoc on the microbiome and gut health.
It is like wheeling out a nuke to deal with a peaceful protest.
Yes, they (antibiotics, not nukes) might have a place in serious health circumstances, but to use antibiotics for any ailment is not useful.
And what if the symptom you are experiencing (e.g. an infection) is actually the body trying to detoxify the body, and the ‘activity’ going on is like the ‘clean up crew’ in the forest, who are trying to break things down, and excrete what is not needed – as opposed to being the problem.
Sort of like the fire fighters not being the problem, but the solution.
Food for thought.
A Recommendation
I encourage you to ponder what I have shared, and see if, as a result, you can come into a more loving and trusting relationship with your body. The psychological benefits of loving, accepting and trusting your body is for you, and not against you, will serve you exceptionally well too.
Consider next time, when you are experiencing any symptoms, what the symptoms might be trying to tell you, in order to get to the true root cause.
And whether, you might also just need to get out of the way and let your body do its stuff (like 6-months ago when I was experiencing the ‘double whammy’ after a meal which obviously had something in it my body did not like).
My primary go-to health protocol for dealing with most symptoms over the last 20 years has been to stop eating, stay well hydrated and then get comfortable on the couch and read a book or few. Obviously if there is something more serious, I might consult someone (e.g. a medical professional not focused on symptom suppression), but I have not had that need for almost 20 years.
Your body is super smart, for your benefit, pro-life, and may at times do stuff that we don’t fully understand.
In Summary
The clean-up crew (microorganisms) might not be the problem, but the solution.
Know that puking and pooping – regardless of their discomfort – are a mechanism for the body to heal (and is common to all mammals and a whole bunch of other critters on this planet).
Don’t assume that suppressing symptoms equals good health; focus on trying to understand the underlying ROOT CAUSE and deal with that.
Your body is SUPER SMART and has been figuring out sh#t and passing it on to future generations, for 100’s of 1000’s of years.
My Parting Words
I hope I didn’t sound too preachy.
I just get my back up when someone tries to imply, or assume, our bodies are stupid, and do things that are not good for it.
For instance, I might get a rash on my body because I am super stressed, or maybe my liver is super stressed and it is trying to get rid of toxins through the pores of my skin.
The whole symptom suppression form of medical treatment is a bit too lazy for me.
I want to have high vitality into old age, so I think it is important to come into a more loving, accepting and understanding relationship with my body.
To listen to it when it speaks (often via symptoms or even feelings).
And then to try and figure out what the root cause might be.
Again, in the face of a common belief that “a physical symptom must come from a physical cause”, I am convinced that there might also be a mental, emotional, psychological or psychosomatic origin or contribution to the symptoms I am feeling.
How are you when it comes to beliefs about your body?
Are you in a loving and accepting relationship with it? (I hope so)
On that note, let’s call this conversation a wrap.
Enjoy a day of hanging out with your super smart body, and a week of exploring potential root causes for symptoms that might be trying to get your attention.
Take care.
Carl
Quotable QUOTE:
“Don’t assume that suppressing symptoms equals good health; focus on trying to understand the underlying ROOT CAUSE and deal with that.“ Carl Massy
(Author of 18 Ways We Make Life WAY Harder Than It Needs To Be)
PS: Have you read or listened to this book yet? 18 Ways We Make Life WAY Harder Than It Needs To Be
