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Original episode: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/christine-runyan-whats-happening-in-our-nervous-systems/id150892556?i=1000513584252

1 quote:
“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. And in that space lies our power to choose. And in our choice lies our growth and our freedom.”

Key ideas: When conscious and subconscious reactions work better, how statistics can be a source of trauma & how imagination is a double edged sword.

Who is Christine Runyan?

Clinical psychologist and professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.  
A certified mindfulness teacher, that co-founded and co-leads Tend Health, a clinical consulting practice focused on the mental well-being of health care practitioners.


Idea 1 @ 3mins: 

Having conscious as well as subconscious thoughts can be useful at different times.  One example of this is our “fight-flight” system. Whenever we sense a threat or any danger, our nervous system automatically instills a fight or flight response, which doesn't happen at the level of our conscious awareness.  This can be useful for situations where there's no time to think, such as an emergency. But, things such as our panic response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which also activated our fight or flight system, would be better off if we brought the awareness to our conscious mind, so that we can actively think through our responses, as opposed to only relying on our instincts in flight or fight mode.

Idea 2 @ 21mins: 

Horrible statistics about certain things can become another source of trauma for people.  During COVID, so many people talked about the increased percentage and statistics of suicide, depression and more.   But we also need to realize that, statistics that say something like '30% of people have xyz', also says that 70 percent, or the majority of people don’t have it.   Which can push people to think; what’s wrong with me? and ask questions such as “am i not resilient enough or strong enough?"  We have to be compassionate to ourselves, and realise that everyone reacts to the same things differently.

Idea 3 @ 32mins: 

Our bodies and mind, can often react in similar ways to what is imagined, as it does to what is real.  Runyan sometimes say to her clients, “I want you to imagine cutting open a lemon, a juicy lemon, and bringing that half of the lemon onto your tongue. And just let it rest there. And what do you notice?”  Most people can imagine tasting it, and their body reacts by releasing additional saliva.  We can create a physiological response through our imagination, which is a double edged sword. It’s a gift and a curse, because we can use it to comfort ourselves, but it's also the source of worries.


1 question:

Can you think of a way for you to use your imagination to create more comfort?


Other topics:

How the year of the pandemic and social isolation impacts us.
Other strategies that we can all do from home, to help calm ourselves.
Metabolizing the reality that we have much less control or even no control in a lot of areas.

Written summary: https://www.owltail.com/summaries/BapZY-Christine-Runyan-Whats-Happening-in-Our-Nervous