I have been working on self improvement for probably 30 years now. I like integrating new ideas and information with my current schemas. For those of you who don't know about your schemas, here is a simple explanation.
A schema is a cognitive framework or concept that helps organize and interpret information. Schemas can be useful because they allow us to take shortcuts in interpreting the vast amount of information that is available in our environment.
However, these mental frameworks also cause us to exclude pertinent information to focus instead only on things that confirm our pre-existing beliefs and ideas. Schemas can contribute to stereotypes and make it difficult to retain new information that does not conform to our established ideas about the world.
From: www.verywellmind.com
I learned quite a few years ago that "I" am a figment of my own imagination. I really enjoyed watching the National Geographic television show called "Brain Games". This show really explores how your brain plays tricks on a person.
I recently found an article that supports the idea that I am a figment of my own imagination, "it turns out that identity is often not a truthful representation of who we are anyway – even if we have an intact memory. Research shows that we don't access and use all available memories when creating personal narratives. It is becoming increasingly clear that, at any given moment, we unawarely tend to choose and pick what to remember. When we create personal narratives, we rely on a psychological screening mechanism, dubbed the monitoring system, which labels certain mental concepts as memories, but not others. Concepts that are rather vivid and rich in detail and emotion – episodes we can re-experience – are more likely to be marked as memories. These then pass a “plausibility test” carried out by a similar monitoring system which tells whether the events fit within the general personal history. For example, if we remember flying unaided in vivid detail, we know straight away that it cannot be real". From: theconversation.com
Another interesting article was about trauma and transformation. This article talks about "people who go through intense trauma and become deeper and stronger than they were before. They may even undergo a sudden and radical transformation that makes life more meaningful and fulfilling". Intense traumatic events,...include bereavement, serious illness, accidents or divorce. Over time, they may feel a new sense of inner strength and confidence and gratitude for life and other people". I would also include disenfranchised grief under traumatic events, any loss that impacts your life should be classified as a traumatic event.
From: theconversation.com
I found another noteworthy article about feeling overwhelmed by current events. "Ever had the feeling that you can’t make sense of what’s happening? One moment everything seems normal, then suddenly the frame shifts to reveal a world on fire, struggling with a pandemic, recession, climate change, and political upheaval. That is called “zozobra,” the peculiar form of anxiety that comes from being unable to settle into a single point of view, leaving you with questions like: Is it a lovely autumn day, or an alarming moment of converging historical catastrophes?...As scholars of this phenomenon, we have noted how zozobra has spread in U.S. society in recent years, and we believe the insight of Mexican philosophers can be helpful to Americans during these tumultuous times." I have been feeling this way for the last ten years or so. I was very glad that someone put this in perspective for me. This allowed me to build a new schema for the anxiety of being overwhelmed! In philosopher Jorge Portilla's (1919−1963) book, The Disintegration of Community, he makes a point that this state of mind has spiritual components.
From: theconversation.com
