Whenever a particular topic or issue continues to show up in my life through the variant magical manners in which the Universe communicates with us, it often becomes the basis for one of my new posts. And the last few weeks, Spirit has doused me with an overabundance of silent whispers regarding an issue that like so many others is often overlooked and or simply ignored. Unfortunately, our current level of global consciousness is still at a level that...... could greatly benefit from a good kick in the tush of TRUTH!! Not because we are LESS THAN in any way, because I know my Tribe is well aware that that is simply not the case. But the illusionary pull of our current existence tends to sway toward EGOIC habits and patterns that simply DO NOT serve us any longer if we are to continue to use them to avoid the real 'TOUGH STUFF' facing a planet full of a population of almost 8 Billion strong!!
As I consider myself to be both a STUDENT and a TEACHER, like a spiritual special ops on steroids, I am constantly searching, reading, and exploring the greatest messages this planet's minds currently have to offer! After over 20 years of self actualization work, I have a wonderful BS detector that protects me from the various charlatans who appear from time to time, simply to prey on those who are in desperate need of a quick fix to their life's hardships. Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, shame on ME!! Or at least that is what my therapist tells me..... ;0)
Hopefully, over the past two and a half years of posting, I have built up enough trust that I no longer need to profess my personal passions when it concerns the LIGHT that I feel should be shone upon a situation that is becoming an epidemic upon our common shores. And one such issue that continues to be brought to my attention is the SINGLE GREATEST PROBLEM facing our planet. I'm sure many of you prescient New Age Nerds are thinking you are one step ahead of me. Climate change, water and food droughts, over population; while they are certainly issues that need to be addressed and PRONTO, the global malady I am discussing in this post is.... LONELINESS ...!!!! For according to many of this world's leading doctors, researchers, and scientists, LONELINESS will be the leading cause of new health issues, not to mention a level of spiritual, mental and physical pain and suffering unlike anything our planet has ever seen!! HAVE I GOT YOUR ATTENTION NOW?!??! ;0) Stupendous!!
One of my favorite spiritual teachers is Dr. Lissa Rankin. I have been following her blogs, books, and TEDX speeches for nearly a decade. She is truly a Goodness Goddess and has a special message that usually completely captivates those who encounter her precious prose! Amongst her many crusades, LONELINESS continues to be a topic she uses her hard fought platform to confront with the ferocity of a true Wounded Healer.
"Loneliness predisposes us, not just to disconnection, depression, anxiety, and addiction, but also to chronic disease and early death. We are tribal beings... and when we feel lonely, our nervous systems sense a threat and activate a stress response that increases the likelihood of illness. When we come together in authentic, loving "soul tribe" community, our nervous systems relax and we connect to the life force — activating the body's self-healing mechanisms and allowing us to heal, body, mind, and soul."
Lissa Rankin, MD
In fact, do you know what the top 2 determining factors of a life of longevity have proven to be by most of the top doctors and health professionals around the globe. Alcohol and smoking....NOPE!
Lack of good health care...GOOD GUESS! Regular exercise and eating healthy... Sorry..Try Again!
The answer is having both a strong love/life partner, and a social community that you engage with on a regular basis!!! Those two factors can lengthen your life a good 10 years longer than ANYTHING ELSE ON EARTH!! Mind Blown... Gotcha! But isn't something to truly ponder about your own social circle... ?!??
In one of Miss Rankin's blog posts, she further fleshes out the rationale for the importance of living a life of CONNECTION!!
The Effects of Loneliness On The Body
What his researchers found is that the tight knit community living in multi-generational homes and enjoying communal dinners and frequent festivities provided solace from the loneliness so many people feel. The love and support of others in the close knit community alleviated the stress and overwhelm many lonely people feel. Researchers posit that the stress lonely people feel, which increases cortisol levels and activates the sympathetic nervous system, raising heart rate, elevating blood pressure, incapacitating the immune system, and increasing the risk of heart disease, is responsible for much of the illness lonely people experience.
Because the people of Roseto never felt alone, they rarely died of heart disease – most died of “old age”- even though they smoked, ate poorly, and drank. As it turns out, alleviation of loneliness is preventative medicine, and the scientific data suggests that loneliness is a stronger risk factor for illness than smoking or failure to exercise.
Because I see a truly symbiotic relationship with healing the WORLD through healing the myriad of intimate ways in which we are currently connecting with and through it.......... Make sense...?!?
What would it look like to have Boys, Girl's and or Nerd's nights off from engaging with ANY technology?!? And instead use the time to call, or even better, make plans to actually have face to face engagements with our TRIBE of true friends and family members!! Call me old fashioned, but some of my favorite memories were the times when me and my old gang of geeky buddies would get together on a Saturday night and play board games until the sun came up! OK, that's how I used to roll...LOL But I'm more than willing to bet that many of you reading this have similar special memories!!
And if you are currently feeling yourself in a state of unbearable LONELINESS is there anyone that you would feel comfortable reaching out to?!? You may be surprised by how many others have felt the very same thing you are currently suffering through! And even more importantly, are much more compassionate than you may be giving them credit for and would be MORE than happy to simply sit and share more than a smidgeon of their time with you!!
After all, your very LIFE'S longevity may depend on your willingness to become more connected to the world around you.... And even more importantly, PLEASE do not forget the gifts of understanding, strength, and wisdom that you still have within you to share with those who have yet to HEAR YOUR STORY!!!
Nerdmaste,
Jeffery Louis Martinez
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