The Pain Teacher Philosophy
The Pain Teacher Philosophy
There is a particularly important principles that I first became aware of through one of my mentors Paul Chek, who is a world class holistic health leader and kinesiology specialist. He discusses a four quadrant teaching model he adopted from the philosopher Ken Wilber called the four doctors being doctor diet, doctor happiness, doctor movement, and doctor quiet. Underneath all of these essential aspects of holistic wellness resides the principle of the pain teacher which basically explains that every form of pain or discomfort we experience in our lives holds a teaching as to what is going wrong for us or is simply a misalignment in one, two, three, or all four aspects of our life experience from this model. He further explains in this teaching that when we repeatedly medicate, sedate, or numb ourselves in whatever manner of ways we begin to cut off the fundamental feedback loop that our body, mind, intuition, and soul is attempting to communicate with us form. For example, if an athlete consistently accrues wear and tear damage from too frequent training, too infrequent rest and recovery, or perhaps incorrect technique in their training the pain teacher will begin giving them signs in the form of inflammatory symptoms which, if not addressed earlier on, can result in injuries and more damage to the body. A practical and rational response to this would be to notice the discomfort, begin paying closer attention to the area of pain, investigate the root cause ie repeated exercise patterns, and if a solution cannot be created by the individual then seek out outside support by a specialist who can support in providing alternative perspective and a corrective exercise program to rehabilitate the problem. The common response for most people in this metaphor or exact scenario is to either push through the pain as if it is nothing more than a nagging irritation or to medicate it with any manner of pain reducing drugs so the individual can continue with their adopted patterns and not have to deal with the discomfort of adjusting their habits to create a better and healthier result.
“On a daily basis, have downtime and take a sabbatical to slow down and be still.”
Paul Chek
When I do an inventory on my life it becomes obvious that my greatest lessons and education came from the deepest spaces of pain, confusion, and tension I experienced. It is all too common to confuse pain with weakness or to assume that if we do experience pain we are somehow broken, imperfect, and are without merit or value in the world. The ultimate truth of this is that our greatest source of pain is also our greatest source of personal power and from that same source contains our most authentic contribution to the world. When studying the lives of the great avatars, sages, philosophers, inventors, visionaries, and leaders through out time each of these luminaries endured and suffered through unsurmountable odds, often times coming from broken families, disenfranchised circumstances, and never really fit into the status quo of society and often times were ostracized from the communities of their time.
It is rare that someone really learns profound life lessons in times of comfort, opulence, and consistent peace. This is why disorder and order are fundamental polarities and complimentary opposites in the human experience. They are necessary because if we are in perpetual peace and satisfaction we have no drive or motivation to evolve ourselves and make any innovative contributions in the world. If we are perpetually in a state of pain and tension we become brittle, fatigued, and demotivated out of shear exhaustion. This is why it is important to fully experience our emotions, fully engage in the circumstances that arise in our lives, and do our best to extract the key lessons that are revealed to us so we can begin to implement new strategies to live better and more effectively towards our next stage of growth and evolution. Honoring and acknowledging our pain is a seminal indicator of maturity and a sign of someone who is integrated within themselves. If someone is constantly avoiding their pain, masking it with substances, or any manner of avoidance tactics it shows that the individual is divided within themselves and is actually in a deeper state of suffering then meets what meets the eye.
Dr. John Demartini has developed one of the most comprehensive and impressive models for human potential and living a self directed life. His work is highly encouraged and one of the primary principles of his life’s work is about integrating all parts and pieces of ourselves so that we are not living in any form of illusion or judgment. He describes judgement as something that we do, ie we judge someone or something outside of ourselves, because it illicit something within ourselves that we have repressed and are unwilling to accept and take ownership for. Dr. Demartini states that what we refuse to own in ourselves we will unconsciously disown in others. When we avoid our emotions, refuse to heed our pain teacher, and take ownership for our lives we inadvertently place judgement onto the world, onto others, or more commonly onto ourselves. Engaging in a process that allows for self integration, not just of our higher virtues, but also of our lower nature qualities, is absolutely essential for holistic wellness and releasing the bondages of self limitation that run most peoples lives.
“Our physiology creates a disease to give us feedback, to let us know we have an unbalanced perspective, or we’re not being loving and grateful. So the body’s signs and symptoms are not something terrible.”
Dr. John Demartini
