Adaptation
from Awareness Journal, Vol I, No 1, Fall 1992
A magnificent attribute of Life, adaptation, is both taken for granted and gravely misunderstood. Life always responds appropriately to the evaluation by Awareness of impressions. There is a constant assessment of both inner and outer environment going on, to the extent of the Awareness's expansion. This covers the most subtle inner workings of the physical body to the full range of one's outer environment and everything in between.
Feeling is the medium of communication between Awareness and Spirit. The response often is felt, as well as the original information. Life is always working toward maintaining optimum function of the physical body. When certain internal chemicals, for instance, get out of balance, adjustments are made toward balance. When the body is exposed to very cold climate, adaptation metabolizes energy differently to accommodate the change. Exposure to hard manual labor will cushion the hands with callous in order to protect. And so on.
When Awareness communicates to Life that there is an emergency at hand, whether real or false (based on misconception), extra energy is provided to cope with it or to fight or flee. In a real emergency the person will do one or the other, using the energy provided, exactly, and thus balance is maintained.
When there is no emergency in reality, but the Awareness perceives that current circumstances do constitute a dire situation because, usually, something painful may be about to occur, or some pleasure is within reach and may be lost, the energy to fight or flee is provided just the same. Life believes its partner Awareness and responds to whatever it reports.
If mother-in-law is coming to dinner and I don't like her and she is critical and I anticipate rejection and/or disapproval, Awareness will interpret this as life-threatening, if its purpose of living is to avoid rejection and to be exposed only to pleasant people. When one's purpose of living, whether valid or not, is threatened, this constitutes an emergency and Life responds.
If our purpose of living is to gain and escape, one may be erroneously but effectively perceiving emergencies all day long. Energy to fight or flee is provided but not used because there is nothing to fight and nothing to flee.
What happens to all this special, extra, emergency energy that is floating around in the body? It must go somewhere, it must be used somehow. Awareness automatically perceives this situation, reports it, and Life responds by finding a way to use it up.
This extraordinary using up of the emergency energy will be experienced two ways, depending upon the person and/or circumstances: either unusual behavior (violence - binges) or unusual cellular activity. Unusual cellular activity is experienced as symptoms. Symptoms are always an indication that Life in Its wisdom is working to restore balance to the body. Symptoms are always a reminder to check up on misconceptions that might have put us in a false emergency state, so corrections can be made.
Symptoms are not bad! They may be uncomfortable, but freely experienced will be gone in no time - Life is at work! People do the body a great injustice when symptoms are seen as an emergency situation (thus summoning even more energy which has to be dealt with), and a great injustice as well when methods are used to banish the symptoms - the extra energy needs some outlet. In the end, either reaction will increase symptoms, and because the body was not designed to live in a constant state of mobilized by unused energy, deterioration and eventually death are inevitable.
Women, especially, are constantly admonished to love their bodies. Probably the most loving act you can do is to allow symptoms to be, to freely experience them. They are an indication of a great Power at work for your best interest.
When we live by misconception we get into this vicious cycle. On occasion we may need assistance, especially if we have been in an emergency state for years and the body is just not able to handle the extra energy. But what is it we need here, and who do we ask? We do not need to be free of symptoms, they are of great value and benefit, balancing the body. What we need is to see this and really accept it; to see what generated the symptoms (false emergency), and correct the false way of interpreting events. If you seek assistance with your health, find someone who truly knows what is going on, someone who knows the physical body is not a machine and not to be treated as such. Find someone who understands that misconception is the root of disease, someone who can help you clear up Awareness, not just symptoms.
Adaptation, including symptoms, is a great gift. It is part of Life, part of Living. Work on your misconception, clearing them up brings strength, real health. When adaptation to improper nutrition, over-exertion, the loud and chaotic environment, and most especially one's inner state, occurs, be thankful you are able to adapt. If you need assistance, seek the real thing, don't risk your life to imposters.
AWARENESS takes in and evaluates impressions and through the medium of feeling communicates this value to "X" - Spirit, Life.
X always responds appropriately with the energy to ACT. It does not question AWARENESS' evaluation, it responds to the value placed on the impression by AWARENESS.
Even if AWARENESS placed an inaccurate value on the impression received, saw and felt it to be an emergency, X still supplies extra emergency energy to cope. If there is in fact no true emergency, this energy is mobilized but UNUSED. It must be used in order to restore balance to the PHYSICAL BODY.
The mobilized but unused energy will be used up in either of two ways: violent activity (binges) or tissue cell alteration and eventual breakdown.
If the unusual sensations felt from this balancing are seen as emergency, this will continue the mobilization of more energy which must be used up, thus the Vicious Cycle, based on INACCURATE evaluation of adaptation as emergency. It is not emergency, it is balancing.
