Mindful Rewrites - Inner Life
Despite the degradation and misery of a Nazi concentration camp during World War II, Viktor Frankl was able to utilize his most important freedom--the freedom to control his inner life. He realized that although the Nazis could subjugate him and his fellow prisoners, they did not have access to his inner life. They could not dehumanize his inner existence. He made a decision to focus on his love for his wife and have conversations with her in his head to help find the strength to stay alive.
After the war he wrote a book about his experiences and survival strategy entitled, Man's Search for Meaning. He wrote about his decision to guard his inner life:
We stumbled on in the darkness, over big stones and three large puddles, along the one road running through the camp. The accompanying guards kept shouting at us and driving us with the butts of their rifles. Hardly a word was spoken; the icy wind did not encourage talk.... My mind clung to my wife's image, imagining it with uncanny acuteness... I understood how a man who has nothing left in this world may still know bliss... In a position of utter desolation, when a man cannot express himself in positive action, when his only achievement may consist of enduring his sufferings in the right way… an honorable way. In such a position man can, through loving contemplation of the image he carries of his beloved, achieve fulfillment.
Mindful Rewrite
Our brain stores thoughts that are positive and inspiring. By focusing on these images we can positively affect our body chemistry. When we focus on thoughts of loving kindness, our body generates the chemicals dopamine and oxytocin that help us feel mellow and centered. On the other hand, if we focus on negative, caustic memories of interactions from the past, our body generates cortisol and adrenaline. These chemicals send signals that cause tension, anxiety, and hyper vigilance. Although these chemical are important in the short term if we need to fight, freeze, or flee, they would not have helped Frankl survive over time in a concentration camp. He needed to preserve his strength and will to live.
Practice
Take a moment and close your eyes and recall a time when you felt very close to someone and at peace and mellow. Then, open your eyes and notice what you feel in your body. People generally report greater feelings of relaxation, safety, and peacefulness because in response to those images, the body has secreted oxytocin and dopamine.
Next, close your eyes again and remember a time when you had a very
negative interaction with another person and see what you notice in your body. Then, open your eyes. Most people report immediate increased tension such as clenching teeth, pressure in their chest or stomach, or increased muscle tightness.
Like Viktor Frankl, during challenging times you can remember
conversations, touch, and visuals of a loving person and a peaceful, loving
time. In this way, you can deliberately prompt your body to secrete positive chemicals that will enhance calm and clarity of thinking.
On the other hand, remind yourself when you relive attack thoughts in your mind that your body will secrete negative chemicals that make you feel more anxious and tense. You may want to remind yourself that you're not refraining from the attack thoughts because of other people, but for your own health and welfare.