A Little Bit of Science
The Reticular Activating System (RAS) is a bundle of nerves at our brainstem that filters out unnecessary information, so the important stuff gets through.
The RAS is the reason you learn a new word and then you start hearing it everywhere.
Over the last decade, my work in the mental health field has given me unprecedented access to the private lives of literally thousands of people. As a registered nurse working in the psychiatric department of a busy downtown emergency room in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, I was in a privileged position. The people that I met during my time there left an imprint on my soul that will stay with me forever. Over this time, I learned many things about the human condition.
Highlighting mental health is important to me for deeply personal reasons. Caring for people with treatment resistant depression, bipolar and personality disorders, severe schizophrenia, and life-threatening addictions gave me a window into human suffering that the average person would have difficulty wrapping their heads around. That despair that takes over when an individual loses control over their very thoughts, actions and sense of reality was something that didn’t seem foreign to me. I was able to connect with the depths of their despair in a way that allowed me to help them to figure out what their next step should be, and many times get them to buy in to the process of recovery.
Through these experiences, what became obvious to me was that whether you came to the ER due to a severe mental illness or because of a situational crisis, there were certain human traits that were common. Notably, it dawned on me that anxiety was a more widespread reality for people than I had previously thought. Most people who struggle with anxiety are never hospitalized for it. Instead, they bear the costs of their chronic anxiety in their daily lives with long term consequences to their physical and mental health. Many people struggling with the daily rigors of life would come into the ER with situational anxiety and you would not suspect that they needed professional psychiatric attention. In fact, a lot of the times they didn’t. Within my scope of practice, I would help people discover the holes in their self-care routines that directly and indirectly led to an increase in their anxiety and ultimately an ER visit. It never ceased to amaze me how a small dose of anti-anxiety medication and a 30 to 45-minute targeted mini therapy session within the assessment was sometimes all they needed to reconnect with themselves and feel better.
The medication was not always necessary but the presence of a clinician that actually listened was important. In a moment of clarity, it would become obvious to some of our patients that the ER was not the place they needed to be. That awareness was sparked by the harshness of their current environment, an understanding that they lacked some critical elements to a healthy body and mind, and the realization that an adequate support system was missing in their lives. It was also interesting to note that the more severe cases of diagnosed mental illness that required more intense interventions would also have better outcomes when they were treated as human beings. Anxiety fueled their other more disturbing symptoms. When the clinician dealt with that anxiety directly the outcomes would be less intense, and they would become more cooperative with the care provided.
Awareness: The Evolution of Knowledge
Knowledge is power. We hear this and think highly of people who exhibit it. People sometimes talk to simply demonstrate their knowledge. However, when knowledge is not connected to real-world experiences and a more holistic approach, knowledge becomes empty. What differentiates awareness from knowledge is clarity and insight. Someone with awareness can observe the world as it is, without their ego interfering with what they see. They can incorporate information and facts into that awareness and more honestly and effectively use that knowledge in a useful way to help themselves and others.
The conversations that occurred within the walls of the small ER rooms with people from all walks of life were enlightening. It profoundly impacted my own awareness of how similar we all are. Across cultures, genders, and ages we share hopes and fears that unite us more than divide us.
This concept of awareness began to evolve the more people I assessed in the Emergency Room. Awareness emerges when you connect it with your fears of loneliness, poverty, and death, without the numbing agents we all use to not feel the discomfort of our thoughts. Sometimes these numbing agents like alcohol, marijuana, food, and other distractions can be considered as a good option to deal with acute anxiety. However, for obvious reasons, it’s not a long-term solution.
Most of us make every effort to avoid dealing with the root cause of our negative emotions. We look for external causes for our pain and suffering and are quick to label it as an illness. Ignoring the root cause of your anxiety can be dangerous and lead to negative physical and mental outcomes. Simply becoming aware of how we use distraction every day to inoculate ourselves from our true feelings is a good place to start the process of waking up. Once you begin to observe yourself like you are watching a character in a movie, you begin the process of awareness.
You can do this yourself, but most people are more likely to become aware by surrounding themselves with other people seeking the same thing.
Awareness In the Real World
Awareness is a beautiful thing to observe in another human being. It cultivates a sense of peace within us when we have it. We recognize how our thoughts, words and actions impact our daily lives. We become aware of the connection between how we think and our emotions in each moment, and how what we say impacts others. The ultimate test of this awareness is when we are called to act. When we become aware, the actions we choose to take, even on the smallest scale, can lead to a meaningful change in our lives and in the lives of those we care about.
On a more practical level, with awareness we take actions we know will help us. We make better decisions about what we eat, how we sleep and when we move because our knowledge about healthy living becomes alive and deeper. That deeper awareness also makes the action you take more intuitive and requires less effort.
For example, when we understand that food is not only to satiate our hunger but also impacts the quality of our thoughts, which in turn impacts our mood, our relationships, our income etc., the decision to forego that second donut is now connected to something more. If you have children and want to be there for them as they struggle to find purpose and become independent. If you want to accomplish something in your life that is bigger than you, or just want to spend many more years just enjoying your life in whatever way you find meaning, then the quality and longevity of your life matters. With awareness, you will no longer be able to disconnect that future with the quality of your sleep, nutrition, and movement. The resulting presence, energy, and more attractive body that this awareness promotes has a currency in our society that goes well beyond the superficial notions of success we often see on social media. It impacts all aspects of life. However, if life is not all it’s cracked up to be and the above descriptions feel alien to you. If you believe that you have an undesirable life and that energy is missing to even care, then it becomes even more important to ground yourself with the principles of a healthy life and pursue the freedom and peace of mind that this awareness can bring. This website was created with you in mind.
Creating the Space for Awareness
There are thousands of programs out there designed to take your money with the promise of weight loss, get rich quick schemes and addiction cures. It can be overwhelming and frustrating to deal with, especially when you need what they have to offer. However, what exactly is it that leads to a permanent change that will materially improve your life? Ideally the best place to initiate major changes is in your immediate environment, the space where you spend most of your time. Putting the required time and energy into where you place your stuff may seem like a pointless and temporary venture. It’s not. If you’re struggling with weight, brain fog, daytime fatigue or fill in the blank, fixing your sleep, eating the right food, and building muscle is an all too overwhelming endeavor. This makes sense. Simply understanding how your surroundings may be interfering with your goals may be a good first step. The constant decisions we make about what to wear, when and what to eat, and how to sleep can lead to decision fatigue and be exhausting to the most energetic people. In that overwhelmed state the best thing to do is to stop everything you are doing and modify your environment. This also includes the people who inhabit this environment.
With Great Awareness Comes Great Responsibility.
Weeks before the official launch of this website and the publishing of this blog post you are reading or listening, my inner voice compelled me to register for a series of talks at a local yoga studio. The name of these talks was aptly titled Sol Sessions, a clever nod to the name of the yoga studio “de la sol”. I knew it was time for the next stage of my own evolution when I heard the speakers. I needed to be around people who were doing the hard work of personal growth and who were willing to share those experiences without a filter. I could not be more convinced that my inner voice was leading me down the right path after listening to two featured speakers, Emily Marques and Katie McClelland, the owner of the studio. Their talks came from the heart and had a palpable energy that reached their audience. Their stories of emotional turmoil and overcoming their struggles to the point where they now can proudly declare that they love their lives reinforced something within me that left me hopeful and inspired. The themes they touched upon really struck a nerve. It echoed some the themes we here, at MelloFit Labs, encourage people to think about.
Katie began her talk about how people routinely make assumptions about others and how the perception of her life could easily fall into that trap. As a successful businesswoman, yoga instructor and moving speaker, it did not perfectly line up with her past as a crystal meth addict. The two images did not align with each other. She went on to describe the roller coaster ride of addiction which took its own time to play out but how she is grateful. The gratitude was radiating from her. She also talked about how she could not imagine how she would have recovered without the support of her family. Emily, the very first speaker in the series, also spoke with a brutal honesty that brought to light her struggle with an eating disorder. Emily concluded her talk by eloquently making a plea to those in distress. She summarized something this blogpost hopes to highlight, by asking her audience to figure out what they need and learn how to ask for help.
Listening to Katie and Emily was a wonderful reminder to me of how struggle can lead to purpose and service if you just stick with it. It was also a powerful reminder of the importance of community.
Final Thoughts
Statistics tell us that most of us fail when we pursue our fitness goals. Even the goals we set lack clarity and are not tracked properly to be helpful. The people who sign up for gym memberships in the New Year and stick to that habit is a tiny percentage of folks. Sleep is seen as nice to have, but the reasons for prioritizing adequate quality sleep is disconnected with the critical biological functions that it facilitates in the body and our ability to think clearly. We also eat unconsciously to feed our emotions and the outcomes could not be more devastating as we age. However, with all that science is teaching us today, there is always someone in the room who shouts out “genetics” as an excuse to not make better lifestyle choices. Our health care system is overburdened and lacks the resources to meet the needs of the population. Despite all the healthcare dollars we spend we are getting sicker, not healthier. Therapists, personal trainers, and coaches are seen as a luxury and can be very expensive. It’s worth every penny if you find good people but finding good ones can be challenging for many reasons. In a sea of voices, we hope MelloFit Labs serves to offer a different approach to health, defining it more holistically with measurable outcomes. We have many tools in our tool kit to help motivate you, get you started and keep you going until you reach escape velocity.
Your own personal health journey will start the moment you become aware of that conversation you are having with yourself right now in your own head. Next time you close your eyes to rest, you just may become aware of the lies you tell yourself. The lies that misrepresent what you can do and stop you from taking actions you know you must take to improve your physical and mental health. In simpler terms, to find peace in this world.
