No, You're Not Going Mad... The World Is.

...What dawned on me was the feeling and recognition that rather than just walking into a cinema to watch a film, and then walking out afterwards back into 'one's own life', we are now collectively living inside a sci-fi movie, which we can no longer escape from. We are trapped in the movie itself.

It's not so easy to put into words how I'm feeling right now ...

...to describe what is going on inside my mind after being in full on 'Lockdown' for 3 weeks (a word I am sick of saying and hearing, to the point that I am starting to just refer to it as 'LD')...

...but let me try...

...because you may be feeling it too...

...and it's useful to understand why we can be feeling so 'out of sorts' with what is going on right now...

...so that you know you are not going mad...

...even though the world really actually is losing its collective mind.

So here goes...

How have I been feeling?

I've been feeling strange.

Like my mind is trying to catch up with 'reality'.

But then, what is reality anymore? What is 'real life'? It's hard to tell, because what was is no longer, and what is now is chaos, and what is to come, we just don't know. 

As we sit here in full on LD in New Zealand, we are in limbo. We just sit and wait for it to end, waiting on our 'jailers' to give us permission to get back to our normal lives, even though it is clear there is no normal life to go back - or forward - to. 

We are, for all intents and purposes, in jail. Yes, a comfortable jail, where we can sleep in our own beds, and pop out for groceries, but apart from that, we are in prison.  We have lost control of our freedoms, and this does have an effective on the human psyche. And unless we know how to manage our mental health and emotional wellbeing, this effect can be not so positive.

So let's look at what is going on for us mentally and emotionally, so that we can make sense of things, which may help us navigate these very strange times we find ourselves in. 

Trapped

I remember being told about a study some years ago on rats. 

It's not a very pleasant thing to recount, but it's apt here.

In the study, rats were 'pinned' to a board, so that they couldn't move or escape. They couldn't run away. 

The researchers found that this entrapment was worse for the rats than going without food or water.

In other words, the rats found it more stressful to be trapped, than to not eat (remembering that not having food is one of the most stressful experiences for any animal to experience). 

I think I'm feeling a bit like these rats, and I'm sure many others are too, and I am well aware that we have only been in LD for 3 weeks, compared to weeks and months for others around the world. So my heart goes out to everyone and anyone who has it harder, because I do recognize that we have it easy here. 

However, the stress I'm talking about that we are all feeling is not just about the fact we are locked up in our houses.

Losing the Plot

I'm talking about the whole global situation of the insanity which is ensuing as a result of the so-called pandemic. 

I would say that for many it is pushing us mentally to the limit, and for many reasons.

• For some the financial stress is becoming unbearable.
• For others the uncertainty over the future of work is causing agonizing worry and stress. 
• For some, being unable to receive the medical help they need for other health issues is causing extreme physical and mental pain
• For some, being stuck between 4 walls in dysfunctional, or even abusive, family dynamics may be distressing, even dangerous.
• And for many the ongoing uncertainty of how long this situation will last and repeat over and over again, is one of the most emotionally debilitating parts of the whole schebang

And for some, like myself, the slowly dawning re-cognition of the reality of the situation we find ourselves in globally, is really testing my mind to its limit, because what is happening is truly beyond what we have up until now deemed 'ordinary' in life.

So if you feel like your world has been turned upside down and inside out, you are right. 

Living in a Sci-Fi Movie

The other day I started to watch a TV series called 'Brave New World'.

It's based on the well-known book by Aldous Huxley written nearly 100 years ago in 1931, but made as a 'modern version' of the story. It couldn't be more apt for what is happening right now, because it's very much about what it's like to live in a society where people are utterly and completely controlled, and who are terrified of facing their feelings. 

As I closed my computer after watching a couple of episodes, what dawned on me was the feeling and recognition that rather than just walking into a cinema to watch a film, and then walking out into the fresh air afterwards back into 'one's own life', we are now collectively living inside a sci-fi movie which we can no longer walk out of. We are trapped in the movie itself.

Of course there have been many warning signs over the past 20 years, in particular with the many sci-fi movies and series which have filled our screens. One only has to think of films like 'The Matrix' or the 'Avenger Series' to know what I am talking about. 

In general I have stayed clear of these films, as I find them too disturbing for my senses, but I did watch the Matrix triology, the first of which was in 1999, and knew back then that it spoke the truth about what is happening in the world. I just never realized that I would be seeing and experiencing its foreboding for myself in such a way as we currently do. 

Just like Leo, we are all now collectively faced with continuing to be plugged into the matrix, or consciously extricate ourselves from it, and this is no easy task. 

Collective Trauma

It seems clear to me that what we are experiencing is a collective trauma. On a massive scale. 

And for those of us who are sensitive, we are aware that what we are personally feeling is the combination of our own personal experience, along with the fact that we are all plugged into the feelings of the collective whole. Whether we like it or not, or believe it or not, the fact of the matter is, we are literally 'all in this together' - at a quantum level - because everything IS connected on a quantum energetic level. 

It is no surprise then that we may be feeling 'out of sorts', for three core collective reasons:

1. Each of us is 'plugged in' to the collective psyche of the world, and therefore 'feeling' what is going on collectively psychologically for all 8 billion of us in the world.
   
   
2. We are collectively experiencing a very real collective mental breakdown, where the 'old world' is crumbling, and the new one is no-where close to being built - we are currently 'in limbo' as the old collapses, and that is not a comfortable place to be. (I briefly talked about this in this recent video). 
   
   
3. We are all collectively experiencing the effects of the tyrannical regimes which are currently attempting to control of us, to strip us of our freedoms, some say to even harm us, all in the name of 'helping us'. And this is immensely traumatizing. 

This type of control is very familiar for anyone who has come through an abusive relationship. I wrote about this in a recent blog on psychological abuse. The abuser will always say 'it's for our own good' and for some time we may believe them, but eventually, if we are lucky, we will start to trust the wisdom inside of us which is telling us otherwise, and we will wake up to the truth of what is going on... and we will get out. 

So it is no wonder if you, like me, are feeling a little out of sorts. 

How can anyone be expected to feel normal when there is nothing normal about what is going on?

Everywhere I turn, the rules are getting more and more stringent. More and more our freedoms are being taken away, in the growing polarization between the v'd and unv'd. 

I read just yesterday that in Pakistan the unv'd will no longer be able to drive on motorways, purchase petrol, fly domestically, attend marriage ceremonies, go to shopping malls, or restaurants, or hotels...

And just this week in New Zealand parliament is discussing whether the v'd and nonv'd should be allowed to intermingle, citing certain companies overseas who are not allowing workers to return to work if they are not v'd. (see footnote).

Is it any wonder that we are feeling out of sorts? Or sinking into despair? Or finding it hard to cope?

It is not a surprise at all. 

So we must FORGIVE OURSELVES if we are finding it difficult to cope. 

You are forgiven.

You are not going mad. 

You are a normal person trying to cope with an insanity and mass psychosis which is taking over the world (another topic of a recent short video). 

We are, as they say, literally losing the plot.

We do find ourselves in a world gone mad.

And that is not an easy or comfortable place to be.

The trauma we currently find ourselves in is akin to the trauma a person finds themselves in when they are being emotionally or mentally abused, or the type of PTSD soldiers experience during or after war, or when one is experiencing a mental breakdown. 

We are in a collective trauma, and it is taking its toll.

For months now, people have been waiting and hoping for things to 'go back to normal', but it's not happening, and it may not do so for quite some time, possibly not even in our lifetime. And this is an overwhelming fact to grapple with. Which is why most people are not able to face this truth, and instead continue to bury their heads in the sand. And that's OK, because we all have to do whatever we need to to cope. 

But for those of us more 'awake and aware', we cannot bury our heads in the sand. And it's not fun facing the truth of what is going on. Just as Leo had the decision to make, would he continue to stay in the Matrix once he saw it, or would he choose to step out?

Solution Time

So enough of talking about the problem, even though I've only just touched on it.

I'm most interested in staying sane, and getting through.

And for what it's worth, here are my two cents.

Community and Connection

There is no doubt in my mind, in this ever-growing technological world, where we can no longer go an hour without being plugged into some form of technology, that what we need more of is HUMAN CONTACT. 

We need to step away from our computers, cell phones and TV screens, and be in connection with real human beings. 

Of course, in LD, when we cannot do this in person, it's good - even essential - to connect remotely online, but more than this, we need REAL LIVE IN PERSON HUMAN CONNECTION.

We need to be in spaces in real contact with other human beings, because we need the heart-to-heart connection and real human touch this brings. 

And more than just being in the physical presence of other humans, we need to learn what 'real heart-centred connection' really means. 

We must train ourselves (if we don't already do this) to have real heart-centred compassion for our fellow (wo)men... to be putting ourselves in others' shoes so that we can see what it is that others need... and really start to create what spiritual teachers call 'true brotherhood'... where we truly care for every person we meet as much as we would care for a close friend or family member. We must learn and exhibit the true meaning of brotherhood. 

Fresh Air and Nature

We must make sure we are getting enough fresh air, sunlight and if possible access to nature.

I realize this is difficult in built-up cities, especially if there is much pollution, but as much as possible, we MUST get outside our 4 walls and into nature.

Why?

Because being in nature - the natural world - helps us rejuvinate our mind and body, and brings us back to a sense of sanity. 

When we connect with 'Mother Earth' she nourishes us. Walk barefoot on the ground when you can. 

Breathe in the fresh air of the forests and mountains.

Be out in nature, every day. 

Manage your Mind and Emotions

Do your best to manage your emotional state and thoughts. Whenever you find yourself getting too negative, cancel out the thoughts. Learn to process your own feelings so they pass quickly. All the trainings on the Emotional Alchemy Academy site can teach you to how to do this, so that you take back control of your mind and emotions. It's empowering and freeing. 

Keep a place of hope in your heart. Even if we don't know the outcome, or when things may change for the better, we MUST keep hope in our hearts, we MUST keep focusing on what can go right. 

Grow Yourself

Work on growing your self-realization, because it is only by collectively increasing our self-awareness, and cultivating wisdom, that ultimately we are going to dig ourselves out of the mess we have collectively created as humanity.

If you are serious about doing this, the Ren Xue teachings and trainings can help you get there. They are specifically designed to help people cultivate the heart consciousness and dismantle the negative mental patterns which have led us to create the world problems we are now experiencing. They are profound teachings brought to us now in a time of great need. 

Final Thoughts

I sincerely hope these thoughts are useful. If you have been feeling out of sorts, or even in despair, I hear you, I get it. It takes a lot for the brain to catch up with what is going on, and more than ever we need to bring back humanity into the equation. True heart-centred humanity is what is needed for us to get through.

Step away from technology (especially the mainstream media) and reconnect with nature and real people. 

Go find your tribe. 

XO.

Footnote

Government Motion on Notice No 1 Approval of orders made under the COVID-19 Public Health Response Act 2020 - Video 4 https://ondemand.parliament.nz/parliament-tv-on-demand/?itemId=220392