One of our biggest challenges is our resistance to change. The DNA of plants, animals AND humans do it every second of every day. It’s a part of our nature; yet, we resist, resist, resist change almost as frequently as our DNA signals the need for it. What’s this about? In my opinion … control …

Earlier today, I shared the thought: rigidity of beliefs and practices (meaning lifestyle) equals stress on Twitter. According to my work, rigidity is control and this need to control is killing us … physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. To disagree is foolish. Our genes are consistently adapting their messages to the cells based on the incoming information which can be anything from our neurochemistry, to nutrients as well as toxins. Everything we’re exposed to can and should be viewed as a potential chemical messenger that either activates or deactivates any number of genetic functions. In other words, changes are occurring without our knowledge which is why symptoms come as a surprise! We weren’t aware that anything was going awry and then all of a sudden …. BOOM … anxiety, fatigue, pain, insomnia, agitation, headaches and …. you get the idea.

However, what do most of us do about it? Mask it with some type of remedy which can be anything from taking an OTC, paying a visit to the doctor’s office, becoming argumentative with others, pretending ‘it’ doesn’t exist, to using food, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, gambling, shopping, drama (a.k.a. attention seeking behavior) and so on just to avoid the discomfort of changing our thoughts, environment, diet, etc. And that’s just the point, we don’t like our circumstances (which are actually messages); so, we do what we can to alleviate the discomfort. While I can wrap my head around this, I do wonder, what are we avoiding?

You see, this is the million-dollar question. The way I look at it, the bottom line answer for all of us has to do with the fear of uncertainty. Being able to predict the probable outcome offers extraordinary comfort even though the situation looks uncomfortable to those observing. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate our ability to think and reason. It’s saved my hide a time or two and even the reason I’m writing this post. Resistance and control aren’t bad; frankly, there is no such thing as good /bad, right / wrong … these are judgements made up by man. Everything is an opportunity to experience ourselves and adapt accordingly.

Interestingly enough, these very interpretations are what get us into trouble. Allow me to clarify. When the body is exposed to either an internal or external signal (a.k.a. chemical molecule), it responds by making the necessary adjustments without us knowing or feeling it. In other words, our bodies are designed to adapt as needed for the preservation of the organism. Here’s the catch long term exposure to harsh experiences i.e. chemicals or trauma prolongs this ‘altered state’ and after a while, symptoms arise. This is where thinking, reasoning and control come in a.k.a. the cooperative effect within nature …

Unlike plants, animals (which includes humans) live with awareness. Well actually, all living organisms are blessed with awareness; even plants have the ability to protect themselves from apparent threats which means awareness has nothing to do with mental function. In that case, animals possess the gift of thought which offers opportunity. As is such, plants can’t move or sound an alert; although, they do communicate. Animals (not always humans) have the capacity to do both. When it comes to illness, it intrigues me to say that the plants have a slight advantage over the animals (including humans); however, it's important to note that there is evidence the plant kingdom is struggling as a result of human influence. Additionally, many animals suffer from such diseases as cancer, not to mention others depending on their domestication. What all of this illustrates is the DNA attempting to protect the organism through chemical changes and struggling as a result. The difference between animals (including humans) and plants is emotion; if you don’t believe that other animals have emotions, then let’s just reference the brain and social interactions all of which produces mental stress. This, unfortunately, complicates matters for them because it was the environmental stress that triggered the problem to begin with. Regardless, these animals have enough sense to stop and take care of themselves as best they can, for as long as they have can .... and that's without human intervention. Now, this isn’t a call to save the environment; although, changing our toxic ways would prove to be a beautiful self-less act. No, this is to point out how well (I use this term loosely) animals and plants adapt according to the information being received. When animals (not most humans) begin to feel poorly, they slow down and rest. They do not resist the signal to change their behavior even when they’re injured. No matter, both plants and animals would benefit greatly from human assistance because we have the knowledge and resources to share a.k.a. nature helping nature. As for humans, we are no more a complete package than any other animal; our challenge is accepting this fact. We are not superior, we’re just a different operating system, and it’s our resistance to this point that is making us sick AND harming the planet ….

Which brings me right back to rigidity. Because we have such an amazing ability to think, calculate and predict, we’ve become convinced as a culture that ‘we know’. But, what do we know? We know what’s ‘normal’ i.e. the family history of illness, menstruation and menopause are uncomfortable, expectations of our kids and home life should look a certain way, relationships are rough … or how about life in general ….. We seem to have a number of rules for the way life and health should go; although, not everyone agrees. Nevertheless, they resist the different thoughts and lifestyle choices out of fear of what might unpredictably happen. It’s this level of resistance and control that is killing us and this goes for everyone, not just a select few.

Look, if you’re facing a situation that requires you to slow things down and ‘check it out’, then by all means do it. As I said, resistance and control are a two-way street … I’m not suggesting that we succumb to all that is. Not at all, even though we are turning a blind-eye to our very nature and all that's available to us. Nonetheless, we have this incredible skill called discernment, and this is a call to begin using it. What’s more, this is a message to pay attention and consider changing the way we think and uplevel our choices. I know we ‘re not going to change the world over night …. and then again, there is the story of the 100th Monkey! The more each of us embraces and works with change, the bigger the ripple and eventually it will catch on. No matter what, change is unavoidable. Which brings me to one final question: do we want to actively participate through cooperation or is it preferable to be a victim of something that could have been avoided?