Another lesson learned in Self-Awareness.
Viral pathogens, similar to the Coronavirus, have infected all types of life forms often causing novel illnesses since the beginning of time.
Viral information and misinformation about COVID-19 are rapidly and widely circulated to the masses via the internet.
The novel illness is currently unpredictable causing fear and panic.
The fear of the unknown (chaos) spreads virally due to news and social media.
The antidote to the unknown is predictability and control.
Unrestrained exercise of power or control becomes tyranny.
The power to act, speak or think as one wants without restraint is called FREEDOM.
Our culture willingly exchanges convenience and predictability for freedom.
A Dystopian Nightmare
A month or so before my first child was born I watched a 2009, post-apocalyptic movie called The Road. It was a horrible movie to watch right before having kids. Its dystopian plot focused on a boy and his father battling for survival while the civilized world was ending. This movie isn’t all that original in plot but due to the timing of it in my life, I was catapulted right into a prepper’s mindset.
I began researching self-sufficiency and independence from our system. I wanted a guarantee for my kids that didn’t rely on something or someone else. I was new in business, didn’t have much and knew I wanted an independently strong base for which to build my life upon.
I built rainwater catchment systems, stockpiled non-perishable items and even started my own garden. My dreams of having my own homestead with goats and chickens roaming freely sounded ideal. It would protect me from some of the darkest times in our history. It would help me “weather the storms” of the 21st century. Essentially I was preparing for the worst-case scenario if all of our convenient cultural systems in place began to fail.
but... Life is Good!
Unfortunately, that dream slowly faded as my family grew and our economy grew even bigger. Eventually, things stopped looking so bleak and started looking well… normal or as culturally expected. Things got easier, business was good, money was being saved. I relaxed; stopped preparing for the worst and started enjoying some of the cultural conveniences that I could afford. Individual sovereignty made sense initially but soon faded as my options for convenience expanded and I conformed to our culture.
Initially, my focus started with doomsday prepper forums for basic survival. As I mainstreamed, I did eventually graduate to learning about Financial Independence and Retire Early websites. This is known as the FIRE movement. There is still a conservative mindset here for setting up your life to be more risk-averse but with an added growth mindset component. It is a positive way to “Prep” for life’s chaotic moments.
People like Dave Ramsey preach paying off all debts and building emergency funds before investing. Paving the way to living without many of the financial burdens we all experience.
Newer sensations in this field like Mr. Money Mustache related much of the same ideas but added that we don’t need a lot to be happy. He also related that hard work and “bad-assity” would always prevail over convenience.
Culture of Convenience
In these unpredictable times here in 2020 we have become far too reliant on these systems of convenience. We have lost our bad-assity. We have become fat and happy! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy most conveniences that we have available but we should keep our reliance on them in check.
I’m reminded of the story of Noah and his Ark. The people of the world had strayed far from their natural paths. God looked upon Noah to build an ark and prepare for a flood. The flood would remove corruption in the world. It would wipe out anyone or anything straying too far from the proper path. It would remove anyone no longer paying attention to the things that matter the most. It would essentially wash away any pathogens that threaten human civilization.
New viruses will not stop or cease to exist. They will not be controlled by any government or mankind in general. It is my opinion that a culture of convenience is making us weaker as a species. We are so afraid of sickness, death, famine and hard work that we are willing to give up our freedoms for shots of control. For an attempt to provide an inoculation to any kind of chaos. Chaos from viruses, bacteria, finances, politics, immigration, violence and many more.
It is evident that we have become so weak, so reliant on convenience that the threat of a nasty cold virus and possibly pneumonia could plunge us into a hole so deep we may never come out. I’m not referring to the extinction of human life but rather the extinction of our freedom. So far the numbers for this pandemic make it look like it will be less or possibly equally damning as the yearly flu. The question is, are we willing to face this fear or relinquish control of our lives to fear and tyranny?
Where do we go from here?
At this time, I can see this pandemic pushing us one of two ways.
- Continue insidiously towards constant control and tyranny of life. This quells the fear of the unknown and ensures predictability in our world. Predictability lacks beauty and reduces tragedy. Currently, a large portion of our predictability comes from our governments and cultural conveniences.
Or
- Realize to have some freedom in life we must have some chaos. The closest antidote for our protection is sovereign individual responsibility throughout the community. It is to strengthen our societies individually from the inside through emotional, spiritual, physical and chemical well-being.
The Terminator
Our world is becoming more machine than man. We are losing our human connection with nature. Our subjective emotion is undervalued and our objective reality is overvalued.
For me as well as many other Americans, I would like to see the coronavirus placed under control but not at the expense of my freedoms, especially medical freedoms. The public is calling on science to create a new vaccine as well as dump tons of Chloroquine into our population. More convenience against mother nature in exchange for more side effects from creepy uncle Pharma and more control from ominous uncle Sam.
Life as we know it is at risk either way. Will it be tyranny over chaos or freedom with a side of nature. If it’s not this virus, there will be another one. It will come for us with our factory-farmed immune systems and we won’t be prepared. It’s up to us to decide. It is really scary to point out that powerful leaders in our world are playing Germ Games and also inventing their antidotes. Possibly for profit and control.
Find balance in Chaos and Order
I’m not suggesting that we completely break our current model. We have amazing technologies and have made amazing advancements. I am suggesting that we try to rationally balance our current culture of convenience. Reduce the greed, gluttony and laziness. Take the money out of politics. Renew our faith in God. Learn how to strengthen our individual sovereignty so that we may navigate tough times. This may be pandemics, natural disasters, loss of a loved one, a cheating spouse or illness that has arrived at your doorstep.
Chaos and order are a part of life and balance is key. It is best when you have one foot in order and one in chaos. This is called the Tao of life. Where creativity and production flourish. Jordan Peterson has been preaching these principles in his countless hours of Youtube videos, podcasts, and books. Check out his site to learn more.
There is no guarantee in life, but preparation and responsibility of every individual is the best immunity to this chaos. For this, I have created the Innate Essentials to improve your immunity against chaos and live a well-rounded, well-balanced life.
Individual Sovereignty
In the last few years, I stopped preparing for the worst of worldly chaos. I stopped stockpiling nonperishables, ditched the garden and relaxed in the area of prepping all together. I got a little lazy. I conformed to our culture and put too much faith in our system. I stopped paying attention.
I write often about the basic concept of the wellness juggle. The act of balancing all the well-being essentials for a healthy life individually. Making sure you have slept enough, ate enough of the right nutrients, hydrated properly, encouraged healthy relationships and much more. The whole point is to keep yourself and your life performing at optimal levels to defend it from any threat perceived. Keeping order within the natural boundaries of the world allowing for some chaotic beauty in life.
I admittedly dropped a few of those balls as my focus shifted into the proverbial rat-race. Here’s what I do to inoculate myself and my family from chaos, COVID-19 and even too much convenience.
12 Immune Boosters to COVID-19, Chaos & Convenience
1.) Hygiene – Wash your hands regularly. My family uses Everyone soaps and hand sanitizers. Not just during a strange pandemic but daily and often. I generally avoid alcohol-based hand sanitizers except in certain situations when it is readily available such as this Coronavirus pandemic. Cover your mouth with a face mask or at least with your elbow when coughing.
2.) Sleep – Sleep is probably one of the most important essentials to restore energy back to the immune system. Dr. Matthew Walker, the author of Why We Sleep, relates “How people averaging less than six hours of sleep at night are four times more likely to become ill after being exposed to the flu virus.” The immune system needs a minimum of 7-9 hours of sleep to function optimally. So during this quarantine time make sure that you’re getting plenty of sleep.
This does not mean you should pass out drunk, high or medicated to gain more hours unconscious. Use this time at home to find your natural circadian rhythm. If you are used to working at night, take some melatonin to encourage a normal sleep cycle. If you are using more screen time in quarantine, consider blue blocker sunglasses for help in balancing out your endocrine system. Finally, I am a regular user of Magnesium supplements like Calm for supporting my sleep as well as stress response.
3.) Eat Real Food – You are what you eat and what it ate. Ya, so this means that you are made up of 37 trillion cells. Those cells are made from the materials you provide for them. Do you have McDonald’s cell membranes and Taco Bell Mitochondria or are your cell membranes comprised of fats made from avocados high in Omega 3’s and mitochondria made from organic grass-fed, grass-finished meat?
So, for a healthy immune system, give your body resources that it can coexist with instead of resources that it must spend extra energy “separating the wheat from the chaff”. Limit natural sugars and eliminate processed sugars completely. Processed and natural sugars can shut down the immune system for up to 5 hours after they’re ingested.
Sad to say, but when you go into the super market’s during this crisis, there is plenty of fresh produce to choose from and the processed foods are completely picked over. Everyone is buying up all the Cookie Crisp and ditching their kale smoothies. Remember the longer its shelf life, the shorter yours.
My take-home message is prepare for the worst but as long as it’s readily available, Eat Real Food. In times like this, I use supplements.
For my kids, I use 1 drop of Carlson’s Vitamin D3 on a Natural Factors Vitamin C wafer. I also give them Smarty Pants multivitamins.
My wife has a predisposition towards asthma and anemia, so for her, we use Carlson’s Vitamin D3, NAC, Pleurisy root, Thrive probiotics, Ester-C and Gaia liquid iron.
I supplement with Carlson’s Vitamin D3 along with some Ester-C, Carlson’s fish oil and Thrive probiotics. Turmeric is used on an as-needed basis.
4.) Exercise – This essential is like the holy grail of health. Movement, as I have professed, is a panacea of health and aide to the human structure. I have written about how it affects all 12 systems of the human body but most importantly, for this post, how it affects the immune system. Movement from an evolutionary perspective is crucial to an optimally functioning physiology. A properly functioning skeletal system can have up to a 48% increase in immune function.
The paragraph above barely scratches the surface of the possible negative health effects of a subluxation. Movement is crucial during this time of “Shelter-in-Place.” So get off the couch frequently. Have a daily regimen of workouts. My workout gear is pretty basic. It includes a jump rope, adjustable weights, kettlebell, Swiss ball, yoga mat, bike and bands. However, you don’t need any of these as walking is the first and oldest form of human exercise. Get outside and get some fresh air and sunshine if possible. It’s good for Vitamin D. Check out some of the at home workouts we are doing on our Instagram.
5.) Water – Hydration is crucial to all forms of life on this planet. From its ability to help detoxify the body of pathogens, support mucous membranes for protection or its role in apoptosis, water is crucial for the immune system to function at its best. Water is the number 1 essential. We have a Berkey water filter at home with the added fluoride filters. I would also recommend Aquasana whole house water filters as a more expensive alternative.
6.) Reduce the stress responses in your life in exchange for a stronger immune system response. A great way to understand this, is the body only has so much energy to run its systems. The ability of the body to run more than one system at a time optimally isn’t possible. Experts in the fields of psychoneuroimmunology have concluded that emotional stress in any capacity may reduce the functional capacity of the immune system. CBD’s are a great way to encourage a decrease in intensity of the sympathetic stress response.
7.) Reducing toxic chemicals removes any unnecessary interference within the systems. The more distractions to the detoxification pathways, the less the body can adapt to other greater threats. In the case of Covid-19, there are some obvious toxins that will affect your lungs as well as the immune system. These include vaping, cigarettes, marijuana, cigars or any inhalation of tobacco.
There are some other controversial chemicals that may also alter the body’s response to the novel virus such as ibuprofen, blood pressure medications, diabetes medications and even natural things like elderberry have been a source of concern. In a blog post titled 20 sources of toxic chemicals every day, I relate to you some of the more toxic and less toxic alternatives available on the market.
8.) Don’t lose sight of your reality, your responsibility and your resolve. Panic and fear are like a dense fog clouding your brain’s ability to act with precision. There is no one coming to save you. You are not helpless. Please don’t misunderstand, in this crisis we are fortunate to have some systems in place trying to reduce or eliminate the spread of this virus. Assuming that they are altruistic. That being said, there are many things you could be doing to increase your chances of defeating this virus and pandemic of fear. These are what the Innate Essentials are for. Will you use this as a learning lesson to strengthen yourself as an individual or will this be just another government crisis that came and went in your life? It’s your choice if you want to take the steps to improve your immunity, your life and your individual sovereignty.
9.) Have self-awareness, pay attention to what you are doing. Pay attention to your strengths and weaknesses. Have self-awareness of your goals and ideals. I began writing this because I knew better than to let my guard down too much. I relaxed and conformed too much. This is a major learning lesson for me. Life needs to be enjoyable but this should not stop you from paying attention. So, I will reflect on my reality and make a decision to move towards a new and better path.
I have said that movement is life. This applies to the movement of your life from one position to a better position. Each position or destination has something you can take from it. The more you learn about reality the more possibilities will present themself to you. You depend on your immune system to defend you when you encounter a pathogen and your immune system depends on you to try and avoid pathogens, toxicities or any insult to injury. Pay attention.
10.) Mindset is crucial in these times. This can be true due to the stress response depleting your immune system response, but also because fear can take you over and control your life. A positive growth mindset is needed in the best of times and the worst of times. Reduce fear and panic so that you and your immune system may be ready for any opportunity that arises.
11.) Posture is form and from comes before function. I related to you up above that your body utilizes an immense amount of energy. Poor posture creates fatigue. Fatigue depletes your energy resources. Keep your head up and show confidence.
12.) Be a relationship prepper. Relationships are my last essential because all the other essentials are internalized. Your relationships are what you choose to do with your external environment. Prep spiritually, Prep financially, Prep your family and friends, Prep all relationships to weather the biggest storms possible. Prep yourself, so that you may provide shelter to those in your circle when the storm is here.
There are No Safe Spaces
We need to be strong and resilient. We need individual responsibility and sovereignty. We need to build good habits that promote the mind, the body, the community, and our world!
This fight in our history will project our path and how we navigate it in the future. Our ancestors fought this and worse and they stood up, faced their fear and moved towards it. They didn’t hide from nature and chaos, they embraced it for its beauty and equally for its tragedy. Onward was their only option.
My lesson in self-awareness is this. There are no safe spaces. I wasn’t “caught with my pants down” because I didn’t have enough rice or beans stowed away or because I didn’t have my vegetable garden flourishing or even because I didn’t time the market correctly. It was because I heard the warning years before this came, then again weeks before it was here and yet I was too arrogant to believe it wouldn’t have an impact on us. I wasn’t paying enough attention in my own safe space. I was too busy with life’s conveniences to stop and check my surroundings.
Ultimately, I am more prepared than most of our country. Mainly because I choose to prepare with my routine and habits that are the Innate Essentials. I try to practice what I preach. Eat Well, Move Well and THINK well are the daily essentials to which my life revolves around. Pay attention to what you are doing and your surroundings. Be Self-Aware. Create routines and habits that will allow you to be resilient in any situation.
Thank you to all those who are on the forefront of this battle and for those who are supporting our infrastructure in these times. The nurses, doctors, contractors, utility workers, restaurateurs, grocers, farmers, janitors, warehouse workers, truckers, delivery service people and anyone else keeping the lights on and impact at a minimum. Here is a link to the CDC for more information.
Thank you for facing the fear.
Nick the DC
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