“The Curse of Consciousness” – A major driver of chronic disease
Repetitive Unpleasant Thoughts (RUTs) are a problem with being human. Although many people are not bothered much by them, others have a difficult time with them, and they markedly interfere with their quality of life. At some tipping point they can be severe enough to compromise the ability to function. The term for this extreme form is obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).
You cannot outrun your mind
Although physical pain elicits and automatic avoidance or withdrawal response, there is no refuge from mental pain, which is processed in similar brain circuits. We only know to suppress them, which makes them even worse. The brain perceives these thoughts to be a threat and fires up the fight or flight response. A sustained threat physiology is the basis of chronic mental and physical disease.
It is my opinion that RUTs may be the most significant force in driving chronic mental and physical disease. Unpleasant thoughts are sensory input and emotions are the physiological reaction. They are solvable using research-based approaches. Possibly the one most overlooked factor is addressing the threat physiology component.
This section of the healing journey is focused on solving RUTs. Here is the learning sequence and the goal is to present an overview of the solution and then present the background material as to why and how these disruptive thought patterns are so common. You can’t “fix” them or do battle with them. You must move through and past them.
Solving RUTs
Introduction – RUTs – Defining the Problem
The Steps to Solving RUTs
The Mental Mechanics/ Physiology of RUTs
Consequences of RUTs
Principles of Addressing RUTs
This section on RUTs has been carved out of all of my materials; The DOC Journey course and app, Back in Control: A Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain, and the backincontrol.com website. For many of you, this section will provide enough information to heal, and others will need to take a deep dive into either the course or app and learn the approaches.
There is little time spent looking backwards into your past traumas. You are actually reinforcing these neurological circuits. The focus is learning the skills to process adversity and shift onto circuits that are more functional and enjoyable. Many people have healed using these principles and the outcomes are consistent with engagement and repetition. Welcome to your new nervous system and life.