A systems view of biological health

Section 4: Practical exercises

8.7 : Miscellaneous notes 7: Distraction and Avoidance

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Many people mistake the instructions to say "what else is there...?&q as avoidance or distraction. This is neither distraction nor avoidance. I am not against distraction - because it is also a useful tool in managing pain. In distraction we attempt to avoid something that we do not like. This can create dissociation if the avoidance is done in any forceful or fearful way.

So the three-zone filtering process described is a very gentle decision that "Yes – I am aware of that, I fully and compassionately acknowledge it, and – for now - I simply choose to curiously place my attention elsewhere".

If any level of force is used in this decision, or there is a fear or dislike of what has been sensed, then a polarity is set up in the body-mind, and this polarity tends to lock the dissociation in – rather than releasing it. Since the primitive brain is very "forgiving", it is perfectly OK to distract or wilfully or even forcefully place your attention elsewhere, or deliberately (temporarily) increase numbness because that is more comfortable. This is always a useful pain management technique. However, distraction is a temporary fix-it that has no long-term effect. So there is a place for it in just getting by from one moment to the next in the day - for sure that is a useful addition to the tool bag, as is any technique that can temporarily improve internal states. But the question I am most interested in is - what will create permament improvements to internal state?

Also see the Reframes.